LOS ANGELES (AFP) - "Gladiator" slew the competition at U.S. movie theatres, amassing 32.7 million dollars in box office receipts in just three days, according to preliminary data released Sunday May 7.

The action-packed Roman Empire epic, directed by Britain's Ridley Scott who directed the hit films "Blade Runner" and "Alien", debuted in nearly 3,000 theatres.

The 103-million dollar mega-production from DreamWorks studios is living up to its early "blockbuster" billing, despite being handicapped by its two-and-a-half hour running time and violence that earned it an "R" rating - making it off limits to viewers younger than 17.

The movie, described by its director as "a post-modern Roman epic", chronicles the valiant general, Maximus (Russell Crowe) in the spirit of by-gone classics like "Ben-Hur" (1959) and "Spartacus" (1960).

"Gladiator" displaced the movie "U-571," in the top spot. That World War II submarine action film was relegated to a distant second place, with just 7.6 million dollars in receipts.