By Dean Goodman

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "The Scorpion King," the headlining movie debut for superstar wrestler the Rock, stung the North American box office with a record opening for an April release, according to studio estimates issued Sunday.

The action-adventure, a spin-off of the two "Mummy" movies, pulled in $36.2 million for the three days since its April 19 release. The previous April record was held by "The Matrix," which opened with $27.8 million in 1999.

Last weekend's top movie, the road-rage thriller "Changing Lanes," slipped to No. 2 with $11.1 million. The Sandra Bullock crime drama "Murder By Numbers," the only other new release in the top 10, grabbed the No. 3 slot with $9.5 million.

The weekend marks the unofficial start of the summer movie season, when the studios count on pricey popcorn flicks to rake in the lion's share of their revenue for the year. Memorial Day weekend, which this year falls on May 24-27, is considered the official start, although it will be preceded by two of the most highly anticipated films of 2002, "Spider-Man" (May 3) and "Stars Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones" (May 16).

"The Scorpion King," reportedly budgeted at a relatively modest $60 million, stars the Rock (a.k.a. Dwayne Johnson) as a nomadic mercenary in the ancient Middle East who battles an evil warlord with help from a comely sorceress. It was released by Universal Pictures, a unit of Vivendi Universal SA .

The Rock co-starred in Universal's "The Mummy Returns," which opened with $68.1 million in May 2001; its predecessor, "The Mummy," bowed with $43.4 million the previous May. However Universal executives and rival studios said the "Scorpion" bow was on target. The film's audience was generally aged between 13 and 34, with males making up 56 percent of viewers, said Universal marketing president Peter Adee.

WOMEN SAVOR "MURDER"

On the other hand, almost three-quarters of the audience for Bullock's "Murder By Numbers" was aged over 25, and females made up 60 percent of ticket-buyers, said Dan Fellman, president of distribution at Warner Bros., a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc.

In a rare departure from her usual fare of light family movies, Bullock plays a cop with a dark past on the trail of two schoolboy killers. Recent similarly themed thrillers, such as "Panic Room," "High Crimes" and "Changing Lanes," have also played overwhelmingly to female audiences.

According to box office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations, the top 12 films grossed $93 million, up 14 percent from last weekend, and up 38 percent from the year-ago period when "Bridget Jones's Diary" was tops with $10.2 million.

New releases next weekend include "Life or Something Like It," starring Angelina Jolie and Edward Burns; and "Jason X," the latest installment in the horror franchise.

After two weeks in release, "Changing Lanes" has grossed $32.8 million. The film, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Affleck, was released by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc.

"The Rookie," a fact-based Walt Disney Co. baseball drama starring Dennis Quaid, rose one place to No. 4 with $6.3 million in its fourth weekend. Its total to date stands at $53.7 million.

"Panic Room," a thriller starring Jodie Foster, fell three places to No. 5 with $6.2 million in its fourth weekend. The film, released by Sony Corp (news - web sites).'s Columbia Pictures, has grossed $82.2 million to date.

The top movies in North America -- April 19-21

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Following are the final data for the top 10 movies at the North American box office during the April 19-21 weekend, according to studio figures released Monday by Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc.

Film Three-day Cumulative

Title Gross Gross

1. The Scorpion King .......... $36,075,875

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $36,075,875

2. Changing Lanes .......... $11,068,372

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $32,761,402

3. Murder By Numbers .......... $9,307,394

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $9,307,394

4. The Rookie .......... $6,451,593

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $53,830,527

5. Panic Room .......... $6,004,655

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $81,981,736

6. Ice Age .......... $5,903,510

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $159,626,661

7. The Sweetest Thing .......... $5,105,706

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $16,912,036

8. High Crimes .......... $3,922,243

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $30,907,865

9. Clockstoppers .......... $2,826,455

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $31,837,557

10. Frailty .......... $2,165,374

BOX OFFICE SO FAR: $7,804,141

Reuters/Variety

John L.: