US$5-6 million expected on first day for "Titanic" 3D U.S. film director James Cameron poses for a photograph during a presentat...

US$5-6 million expected on first day for "Titanic" 3D

U.S. film director James Cameron poses for a photograph during a presentation for the media in Moscow March 29, 2012. REUTERS/Ivan Burnyashev (RUSSIA - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT)

The 3D re-release of James Cameron's "Titanic" was steaming toward a possible $6 million haul at the box office in its debut Wednesday, as the 100th anniversary approaches of the sinking of the real Titanic.

Domestic distributor Paramount is projecting that the film, converted into 3D for a hefty $18 million, will take in around $20 million-$25 million over the five-day holiday weekend.

Box-office observers outside the studio say it could do up to $30 million. That would be impressive, given that the film's lengthy running time - 3 hours, 23 minutes - limits the number of daily showings. It's playing in 2,600 locations in the U.S. and Canada, including 79 Imax theaters.

Fox is handling international distribution for the film, which is opening in virtually all major territories this weekend as well.

The original "Titanic" opened to $28.6 million in December 1997, held the No. 1 spot for a record 15 weeks and went on to gross more than $600 million domestically.

Worldwide, the original "Titanic" took in $1.8 billion, a record that stood for more than a decade. It was topped by Cameron's "Avatar," which took in $2.7 billion in 2009.