"Borat" leads DVD sales, rental charts

By Thomas K. Arnold

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Score another one for the pride of Kazakhstan.

"Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" vaulted to the top of both the national DVD sales and rental charts the week ending March 11, much as the irreverent comedy became a sudden and surprise box office hit when it opened theatrically last November.

The 20th Century Fox release was followed by Disney's two-disc Platinum Edition of "Peter Pan," which opened at No. 2 on the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert sales chart. "Peter Pan" is the latest in a series of big sales successes for Disney animated classics.

The previous week's top-selling DVD, Warner's Oscar-winning "The Departed," slipped to No. 3.

On Home Media Magazine's DVD rental chart for the week, "Borat" scored an easy victory, generating an estimated $9.2 million in rental revenue to second-ranked "Stranger Than Fiction's'" $5.9 million. After two weeks in stores, the Sony comedy, starring Will Ferrell, has generated $12.7 million.

"The Departed," this year's Academy Award-winning best picture, is being closely watched by industry observers because it was released on both next-generation disc formats on the same day. According to Home Media Research, the Blu-ray Disc edition continues to outsell the HD DVD version by a healthy margin of 1.6 to 1.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter