'Spidey 3' spins box-office records

LOS ANGELES, May 5 (UPI) -- "Spider-Man 3" took in an estimated $59 million in its first day in North American theaters, setting several domestic and international box-office records.

Distributor Sony Pictures estimated Saturday morning the blockbuster could finish the weekend with $135 million to $145 million for the three-day weekend in North America, The Hollywood Reporter said.

Friday's haul of $59 million outdid the previous record holder, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," which took in $55.8 million on its opening day last year. "Pirates" went on to gross $135.6 million in its first three days at the North American box office.

The numbers were helped, in part, by the record 4,252 theaters exhibiting "Spider-Man 3."

The movie grossed another $45 million internationally Friday, for a global gross of $104 million, the highest single-day worldwide gross ever.