Sony's Spider-Man 2 leapt into action over the Independence Day holiday weekend,easily ranking top as it spun an estimated $115.8m record gross for Friday toMonday and an all-time high of $180.1m in its first six days.

Both marks stem from the sequel's $40.5m record opening day lastWednesday (Jun 30) and studio executives expect the picture to pass $200m byits eighth day this Wednesday (7). Spider-Man passed $200m in an unprecedented ninedays in May 2002.

The only notable benchmark toslip through the web was the three-day Friday to Sunday mark of $114.8m set bythe original. This time around the arachnid grossed $88.3m, probably due to thepicture's mid-week opening and typically subdued Sunday business over the July4 holiday weekend.

Nobody at Sony will be too bothered however, as the picture looksset for a long and lucrative run and garnered exceptional reviews.

Director Sam Raimi and stars Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunstreunite for the sequel, in which the webslinger confronts personal issues and awell-armed foe in the form of Dr Octopus, played by Alfred Molina. James Francoalso stars.

Fahrenheit 9/11 slipped to second place on $21m for a $60.1m running total in its second weekend,while Sony's White Chicks added $12m for $47.1m and fell one to third after the same amountof time.

Elsewhere, Fox's Dodgeball is approaching $100m after it grossed $10.5m for $86.7m andfell one place to fourth in its third weekend. New Line's The Notebook is holding up well in fifth place on$31.6m after its second weekend.

Ranking sixth, Dreamworks' The Terminal passed $50m in its third weekend afteradding $10.2m for $56.7m. Warner Bros' Harry Potter And The Prisoner OfAzkaban ranks seventh on$225.3m after five weekends and Dreamworks' Shrek 2 ranks eighth on a stunning $410.2m after seven weeks.

Next weekend's wide releases are the Dreamworks comedy Anchorman, starring Will Ferrell and ChristinaApplegate; Buena Vista's action epic King Arthur, starring Clive Owen and Keira Knightleyand produced by Jerry Bruckheimer; and MGM's comedy Sleepover, which stars Alex Vega and Mika Boorem.

Estimated Top Ten US Jul 2-5 2004
Film (Distributor)/International distribution/Estimated weekendgross/Estimated total to date

1 (-) Spider-Man 2 (Sony) CTFDI $115.8m $180.1m
2 (1) Fahrenheit 9/11 (Lions Gate/IFC Films/Fellowship Adventure Group) Wild Bunch $21m$60.1m
3 (2) White Chicks (Sony/Revolution) CTFDI $12m $47.1m
4 (3) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (Fox) Fox Intl $10.5m $86.7m
5 (4) The Notebook (New Line) NLI $10.3m $31.6m
6 (5) The Terminal (Dreamworks) UIP $10.2m $56.7m
7 (6) Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (Warner Bros) Warner Bros Pictures Intl$8.1m $225.3m
8 (7) Shrek 2 (Dreamworks) UIP $7.9m $410.2m
9 (8) Garfield: The Movie (Fox) Fox Intl $3.6m $63.6m
10 (9) Two Brothers (Universal)Pathe/UIP $3.6m $12.6m