J.R.R. Tolkien's all-time classic The Lord of the Rings is top of Malta's box office hits for the first nine months of this year.

However, KRS Film Distributors believe that Spider Man, one of this summer's releases, may this week topple Lord of the Rings to become the year's bestseller so far.

The longest running film, Count of Monte Cristo, which was filmed in Malta and screened for 20 weeks, placed third.

Of the 126 films shown in the past nine months, the most popular ones were those packed with action, followed by comedies, thrillers and drama.

These box office statistics were issued for the first time yesterday at a news conference held at KRS, Valletta, to launch this autumn's new releases.

KRS general manager Charles Pace said that in the 13-week period between October and December 25, a total of 47 films, with no fewer than 10 blockbusters would be released.

This autumn will also see the release of the much anticipated sequels The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

James Bond fans are also in for a treat with Die Another Day, once again starring Pierce Brosnan in the lead role and academy award winner Halle Berry.

Red Dragon, the prequel to Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal, is also out in the coming weeks starring screen legend Anthony Hopkins, Edward Norton and Ralph Fiennes.

Van Diesel, the up-and-coming actor who starred in last summer's hit The Fast and the Furious is back, this time as an action hero in XXX.

Children are also in for a treat with Disney's Lilo & Stitch, a story about a little Hawaiian girl who adopts a dog she names Stitch.

Stitch is not actually a dog, but an alien who was off to an intergalactic prison, but crashed to earth en route and is posing as a dog to escape detection.

Film buffs should also keep their eyes peeled for Heaven starring Cate Blanchett as a British teacher living in Torino, Italy, who after seeing her friends and husband fall victim to drugs takes justice into her own hands.

Another eagerly awaited bestseller is the psychological thriller Insomnia starring three academy award winners - Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Hilary Swank.

The comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which has been a massive hit in both the US and the UK, is also expected to be a crowd-puller.

"I feel we have a very good product this autumn and with 47 films being released I am certain we will cater for everyone's taste," Mr Pace said.

Top 10 Box Office Hits from Jan to Sept 2002

1 Lord of the Rings
2 Spider Man
3 Count of Monte Cristo
4 The Princess Diaries
5 A Beautiful Mind
6 Scooby Doo
7 Ocean's 11
8 The Others
9 Rat Race
10 Vanilla sky