National boxoffice was in full bloom during May as the month's total topped $500 million for the first time and established a new high of $527.4 million.
DreamWorks' "Gladiator" was the month's top film and helped power the frame into new territory, surpassing last year's boxoffice record of $494.6 million by nearly 7%. As has been the case most of the year, ticket unit sales improved slightly on the comparable 1999 period. Admissions tallied an estimated 99.1 million, up a scant 2% from last year's 97.2 million. The 10-year low in admissions was recorded in 1991, when a slim 62.9 million patrons passed through the turnstiles. The admissions counts for the 1999 and 2000 frames fell short of the all-time high May tally of 101 million, generated in 1996 when Warner Bros.' "Twister" and Paramount's "Mission: Impossible" were in theaters. The 2000 month was powered by new releases as eight of the 10 highest-grossing films debuted during the survey period, comprised of the four weeks ending May 25. Universal's "U-571" and New Line's "Love and Basketball" were the only top 10 films held over from the April survey period.