‘Daredevil’ makes Ben Affleck first in class

A second-line comic book hero soared to a first-rate opening at the movies this weekend.

Daredevil raked in $43.5 million and set showbiz buzzing about whether Ben Affleck will finally emerge as a grade-A solo Hollywood star.

The hunky 30-year-old Affleck has been on the brink of that elite stature for several years, after starring roles in the likes of Pearl Harbor, Reindeer Games and The Sum of All Fears.

But he has not yet broken from the pack that includes his pal and Good Will Hunting co-author and star Matt Damon, and he’s better known these days as Jennifer Lopez’s fiance.

Daredevil had the second-highest opening ever for a February movie, trailing only Hannibal, which earned $58 million in 2001.

It helped give this year’s Presidents’ Day weekend a 22 percent boost over last year.

“Ben Affleck has given solid performances before and this is another one,” said Paul Dergarabedien, president of Exhibitor Relations, a Hollywood trade group.

“While some people point out that in a superhero role you’re covered up for much of the film, the trailers featured a lot of Ben. He certainly gets a lot of the credit for the film doing this well.”

But Dergarabedien cautioned against comparing Daredevil too closely with Spider-Man, last year’s $400 million blockbuster – even though it was the success of Spider-Man that sent filmmakers rushing to produce Daredevil.

“It’s futile to compare anything to `Spider-Man’ because that was the biggest-opening movie of all time,” said Dergarabedien.

“That was so big that it did propel its star, Tobey Maguire, into the stratosphere.”

The romantic comedy How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, helped by a Valentine’s Day surge on Friday, finished second to Daredevil with an estimated $19 million.

Chicago, basking in 13 Oscar nominations, finished a strong third with $12.6 million and should soon surpass $100 million.

Disney’s new animated The Jungle Book 2 finished fourth.

Next weekend’s lineup includes the Civil War epic Gods and Generals, the Kurt Russell drama Dark Blue, the raunchy comedy Old School and the Kevin Spacey death-penalty drama The Life of David Gale.

David Hinckley, New York Daily News

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