After an astonishing showing at the box office last weekend, Lions Gate will add a significant number of new theaters to the run of the hit documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 this week. The Michael Moore-directed pic will expand from 868 theaters to 1,184 on Wednesday for a 36% boost in playdates. 9/11 will again increase its availability on Friday to 1,710 locations, or about double the count from last weekend.

With weeks of media hype and debates stirring in communities all across America, Lions Gate is capitalizing on the attention by making the film available in new markets which did not have the film last weekend, as well as expanding in exisiting areas. The Independence Day holiday weekend should prove to be another scorcher for Fahrenheit as moviegoers have more leisure time plus are in a more patriotic mood making the controversial anti-Bush film a desirable choice over the weekend. Of course, the extra theaters and continued media coverage will add more fuel to the fire.

But holding onto the number one spot will be next to impossible as Sony unleashes the highly-awaited sequel to the studio's biggest grosser ever - Spider-Man 2. The super hero adventure launches on Wednesday in a near-record 4,152 theaters with many sites beginning showtimes tonight at midnight.

For NEW reviews of Spider-Man 2 and Fahrenheit 9/11 visit The Chief Report.

Last Updated: June 29, 2004 at 6:30PM EST

Written by Gitesh Pandya