Entertainment Today: Showbiz News

NEW HORROR FLICK TOPS BOX OFFICE

It takes a pretty scary contender to wrest the No. 1 spot away from Hannibal Lecter.

But "The Ring," a re-make of a Japanese mystery about people who drop dead after watching a disturbing video, did just that, earning $15 million at the box office and bumping "Red Dragon," the last installment of "The Silence of the Lambs" trilogy, from the top spot to third place. "Dragon" earned $8.7 million in its third week of release.

Sandwiched between psychological dramas with killer themes was Reese Witherspoon's romantic comedy, "Sweet Home Alabama," which has made nearly $100 million in the four weeks since it was released.

Still partying at the top of the charts is "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," which placed fourth and made $7.1 million this week, followed by the comedy, "Brown Sugar," which came in fifth, grabbing $5.31 million worth of tickets.

ZELLWEGER SET TO DO 'BRIDGET 2'

American actress Renee Zellweger reportedly is gearing up to play British icon Bridget Jones again. This time out, however, she will not adopt the curvy character's 20 extra pounds.

The World Entertainment News Network says the petite blonde will earn between $3 million and $5 million to reprise her role as the outrageous fictional spinster.

The "Jerry Maguire" star was nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in last year's "Bridget Jones's Diary," based on Helen Fielding's best-selling, 1996 novel.

Bridget's adventures continue in Fielding's 2001 follow-up, "Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason," which is believed to be the basis of the film sequel.

WENN quotes a source close to the project as saying: "We've virtually agreed to a deal. In fact, there's an agreement in place and I don't see any reason why it won't happen. She'll be paid considerably more than she got for the original movie. The money wasn't actually a problem. It was more to do with the fact that, now she's a big star, she's got dozens of offers out there -- so when will she have the time? Time was the problem."

DISCOVERY CHANNEL OFFERS JESUS PROOF

The Discovery Channel has announced it will premiere a program next spring that shows possible archaeological evidence of Jesus Christ's existence in Jerusalem and which also talks about siblings.

Called "James, the Brother of Jesus," the program tells the dramatic story of how an ancient limestone ossuary, or bone box, was discovered in Israel baring the inscription: "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus," representatives from the Discovery Channel told reporters in Washington, D.C. Monday.

Twenty Aramaic letters revealed to archeologists the limestone box was a one-of-kind discovery, they said.

The program is based on findings reported in the November/December 2002 issue of the bimonthly magazine, Biblical Archaeology Review.

JOURNALS REVEAL COBAIN'S PAIN

Drugs, fame and love were the main themes of Kurt Cobain's recently discovered journals.

In the diaries, the Nirvana frontman, who shot himself to death in 1994, wrote about how drugs provided an escape from the pain of life. He also complained about his contempt for fame and his passion for his wife, fellow grunge rocker Courtney Love.

Several journal entries appear in the current issue of Newsweek, but more complete versions will be published next month by Riverhead Press.

After the success of Nirvana's album "Nevermind," Cobain wrote the following to ex-girlfriend Tobi Vail of Bikini Kill: "As you may have guessed by now I've been taking to a lot of drugs lately. It might be the time for the Betty Ford Clinic ... to save me from abusing my anemic, rodent-like body any longer."

Battling heroin in a rehab center, Cobain penned an open letter to Nirvana's fans, declaring: "Oh Pleez... GAWD, I can't handle the success! And I feel so incredible guilty!"