Box Office Breakdown: 2012 Has All the Numbers

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Remakes, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists

It was the end of the world as we may soon know it, and that had Sony feeling fine.

The premiere of Roland Emmerich’s latest disaster film, 2012, erupted in theaters this weekend with a $65.2 million finish. Although the movie fell short of 2004’s The Day After Tomorrow (that Emmerich project grossed $68.7 million over three days), it now ranks 5th on the international debuts list. (Sorry, Da Vinci Code.) The John Cusack starrer also managed to cover its reported $200 million budget in one week.

Meawhile, Precious continued to pound the pavement in an expanded release. With only 174 engagements, the critically-acclaimed movie earned itself a third place finish and a $33,762-per screen average.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: 2012 Has All the Numbers

Read More | Variety

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Tom Cruise on a Mission to Cast Katie Holmes

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Paramount, Action, Sequels, Casting, Celeb News, Celebrity Gossip, Rumors, Upcoming Releases

Tom Cruise wants Katie Holmes to play a villain in the next Mission: Impossible movie.

The actor - who stars as spy Ethan Hunt in the action franchise - is desperate to work with his wife and believes an evil part for her in the fourth film would be perfect because he doesn’t want them to play a couple on screen.

“Tom is very excited about taking Mission: Impossible in a new direction and he sees Katie as a big part of that,” a source said. “They have wanted to work together for a while now but the idea of being a couple on screen in a romantic comedy is a bit dull. This might give them a chance to have some fun both as a couple and as hero and villainess.”

Katie - who has a three-year-old daughter, Suri, with Tom - recently admitted she loves bringing her home life into her acting roles. “In my own life, my whole world really revolves around my family. I do what I need to do, but it’s like, ‘How is everybody else doing?’ And it’s wonderful for me as an actress to put some of that into a character,” Holmes said.

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This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: November 17, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks, FOCUS, Magnolia, Miramax, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Action, Adaptation, Classics, Drama, Foreign, Foreign Language, Romance, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, Home Entertainment, Lists, New Releases

Here are some of the DVD and Blu-ray options available this Tuesday:

• Brüno: DVD, Blu-ray
• The Canyon: DVD
• Chasing Amy: Blu-ray
• Clerks: Blu-ray
• Fight Club: Blu-ray
• Galaxy Quest: Blu-ray
• Gone with the Wind (70th Anniversary Edition): DVD, Blu-ray
• How to Be: DVD
• Is Anybody There?: DVD, Blu-ray
• My Sister’s Keeper: DVD, Blu-ray
• The Professional: Blu-ray

Click to continue reading This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: November 17, 2009

Read More | Amazon

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Box Office Breakdown: Christmas Carol Wins, Precious Soars

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Documentary, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Remakes, Science Fiction, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists

We’re still weeks away from Thanksgiving, but theatergoers already have Christmas on their minds.

Disney’s A Christmas Carol, the umpteenth version of the Charles Dickens tale, brought the story back to life with a visual rendition. Robert Zemeckis’ latest holiday creation earned over $30 million, surpassing Polar Express’ open by $7 million. Although the Jim Carrey film didn’t come close to its reported $180 million budget, Carol still has weeks to go before Avatar takes over 3D screens.

Meanwhile, a film with no bells or whistles made an impact just outside the Top 10. Precious, Sundance’s Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize winner, broke a record while in limited release. The 12th place entry averaged a whopping $104,025 this weekend over only 18 theaters. That’s the largest per screen average for any film opening in more than 10 locations.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Christmas Carol Wins, Precious Soars

Read More | Variety

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This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: November 10, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Classics, Drama, Family, Horror, Period, Romance, Science Fiction, Comedy, Home Entertainment, Lists, New Releases

Here are some of the DVD and Blu-ray options available this Tuesday:

• The Accidental Husband: DVD
• Ballast: DVD, Blu-ray
• The Echo: DVD, Blu-ray
• The General: Blu-ray
• Godzilla: Blu-ray
• Heat: Blu-ray
• Ink: DVD
• The Line: DVD, Blu-ray
• Logan’s Run: Blu-ray
• The Merry Gentleman: DVD
• Monsters, Inc.: Blu-ray

Click to continue reading This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: November 10, 2009

Read More | Amazon

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Get Your Name in Paranormal Activity’s Credits

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, Paramount, Horror, Home Entertainment

How did you contribute to Paranormal Activity‘s recent success? Did you talk about it on Twitter? Did you drag your friends to a showing? Did you purchase Dramamine just so you could sit through it?

Even if you’ve watched the movie multiple times already, this promotional tool could have you buying the DVD as well. Those who register by Monday, November 9 will get to see their name listed in the home version’s credits. According to the website, it’s simply the studio’s way of “thanking the fans who turned the movie into a nationwide phenomenon.”

This could be the one time a movie’s credits ran longer than the actual film.

Read More | Paranormal Activity via Perez Hilton

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This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: November 3, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Magnolia, Paramount, Sony, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Documentary, Drama, Family, Foreign, Foreign Language, Romance, Comedy, Thrillers, Home Entertainment, Lists, New Releases

Here are some of the DVD and Blu-ray options available this Tuesday:

• Aliens in the Attic: DVD, Blu-ray
• The Answer Man: DVD, Blu-ray
• The Dead: DVD
• Food, Inc.: DVD, Blu-ray
• Forrest Gump: Blu-ray
• G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra: DVD, Blu-ray
• Howards End: Blu-ray
• I Love You, Beth Cooper: DVD, Blu-ray
• It’s a Wonderful Life: DVD, Blu-ray
• Love Actually: Blu-ray
• National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Ultimate Collector’s Edition): DVD, Blu-ray

Click to continue reading This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: November 3, 2009

Read More | Amazon

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Box Office Breakdown: That Was It for Paranormal Activity

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Fox Searchlight, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Biopics, Documentary, Drama, Family, Horror, Music, Period, Remakes, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists

Based on the numbers from the past week, it looks like This Is It should remain in theaters longer than two weeks. Oh wait - it will.

Since opening late Tuesday night, the concert film has generated a total of $34.4 million domestically - $23.2 million just over the weekend - and approximately $101 worldwide. Although Michael Jackson technically didn’t beat the opener for Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour (that entry earned more over 5 days), This Is It had the best international debut ever for any concert film.

Sony’s win meant a short victory for Paranormal Activity. After a steady climb, and only 1 week at the top, the horror film slipped down to second place. Of course, the word-of-mouth hit has nothing to complain about. Not only has the movie grossed $84.6 million to date, it also had the best per screen average of any Top 10 charter.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: That Was It for Paranormal Activity

Read More | Variety

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Casting Corner: Anthony Hopkins, January Jones and More

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: FOCUS, Paramount, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Drama, Remakes, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Casting, Celeb News, Scripts, Upcoming Releases

Here’s a quick look at some of the casting announcements made recently:

Anthony Hopkins: The Wolfman actor will soon play dad to another large character: Thor. Hopkins has been cast as Odin, father of the title character (Chris Hemsworth) who is sent down to Earth after reigniting an ancient war. The film - which also includes Natalie Portman and Tom Hiddleston - will open May 20, 2011.

Click to continue reading Casting Corner: Anthony Hopkins, January Jones and More

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Footloose Looking for New Director

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Paramount, Musicals, Remakes, Rumors, Upcoming Releases

The Footloose remake has temporarily been grounded.

Although Paramount’s had already lined up a new Ren McCormick (Chace Crawford) and Ariel Moore (Julianne Hough) for its planned update, the studio is now without a director.

Up until last week, Kenny Ortega (High School Musical, This Is It) was the man helming the project. Unfortunately, creative and budget differences lead to his exit. According to reports, Ortega wanted $30 million for a musical extravaganza while Paramount was looking at $25 million for something a bit edgier.

A statement from Ortega’s reps, though, claims his recent project was to blame for his departure. “Coming off the extraordinary project, Michael Jackson’s This is It, director Kenny Ortega has decided it is premature for him to commit to his next film and will not be moving forward with Footloose as previously reported.”

It’s believed Paramount will still try to keep to its March production start date.

Read More | Variety

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