Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow is now a box-office champion, as the opening weekend of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN’S CHEST smashed numerous box-office records. Industry estimates show DEAD MAN’S CHEST’s earning a record $132 million in its first three days, easily outdistancing the previous best performance, when SPIDER-MAN took in $114.8 million on its opening weekend in 2002.

DEAD MAN’S CHEST also holds the single-day box office record, earning $55.5 million on Friday to dethrone the previous champion, STAR WARS: EPISODE III–REVENGE OF THE SITH, which made $50 million. DEAD MAN’S CHEST is also the first movie in history to sell more than $100 million in tickets in just two days.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer told the Associated Press that he had not anticipated the box-office record; he expected DEAD MAN’S CHEST to perform like THE DA VINCI CODE, which earned $77 million in its debut weekend. “I didn’t think we’d get near these numbers,” Jerry admitted. The movie’s broad-based appeal certainly helped: Chuck Viane, Disney’s head of distribution, notes that the audience was equally divided between males and females, and that it attracted all age groups. “It is straight across the board,” says Viane. “Everybody’s coming.”

Disney must be thrilled. Their previous biggest opening weekend was THE INCREDIBLES with $70.5 million; now Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow has brought home the bragging rights to the biggest opening weekend of all time.

The Zone thanks Shadow, emma, ack, and Lady Ashleen for box office stories–you can read all the details on the News & Views forum.