Box Office Breakdown: A Bloody Good Debut for New Moon

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

After months of endless promotion, New Moon finally opened this weekend to monster-sized numbers. But how exactly did the film compare to the other theatrical giants?

1. Despite earning over $142 million since midnight Thursday, the adaptation’s debut still falls behind The Dark Knight ($158.4) and Spider-Man 3 ($151.1 million).
2. The sequel did, though, beat Knight for the best first day open ($72.7 compared to $67.2 million).
3. It had the largest midnight opening ($26.3 million) to date. (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince grossed $22.2 million.)
4. Moon also topped Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire‘s 2005 November debut ($102.7 million).

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: A Bloody Good Debut for New Moon

Read More | Variety

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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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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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Extended Run for This Is It

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Columbia Pictures, Sony, Documentary, Music, New Releases

When does a two-week run ever last for only two weeks?

Earlier this month, the Toy Story/Toy Story 2 double feature was given an indefinite run once it neared its expiration date. Now the forces behind Michael Jackson’s This Is it are also having a change of heart. The documentary, which officially debuted last week, will now remain in theaters through Thanksgiving—that’s approximately 3 more weeks than originally planned. (I’m surprised Sony just didn’t book it for 50 dates like AEG did with Michael’s tour.)

Those still unable to catch This Is It in theaters will likely get tickets to a home version soon. It’s believed the DVD will come out in early 2010.

Read More | Showbiz 411

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In Theaters This Weekend: October 30, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Fox Searchlight, Magnolia, Sony, Adaptation, Biopics, Documentary, Drama, Family, Foreign, Horror, Independent, Music, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases

Here are a few selections in theaters this weekend:

• Michael Jackson’s This Is It (PG): starring Michael Jackson (directed by Kenny Ortega)  **in theaters now**
• Aladin* (NR): starring Ritesh Deshmukh, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt (directed by Sujoy Ghosh)
• The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day* (R): starring Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, Billy Connolly (directed by Troy Duffy)
• The Fall* (NR): starring Benny Ciaramello, Scott Kinworthy, Erica Shaffer (directed by John Krueger)

Click to continue reading In Theaters This Weekend: October 30, 2009

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New Footage from Michael Jackson Documentary

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Columbia Pictures, Sony, Documentary, Music, Trailers, Upcoming Releases

If you watched the recent Video Music Awards, chances are you saw the trailer for the upcoming Michael Jackson documentary.

Now we’re getting a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the singer working through his “Human Nature” routine with film/tour director Kenny Ortega. Although we don’t see a lot of dancing in this particular clip, it’s evident Jackson’s voice was still in fine form.

This Is It hits the stage on October 28.

Read More | TMZ

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Michael Jackson To Be Played By Son

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Biopics, Music, Casting, Celeb News, Celebrity Gossip, Upcoming Releases

The casting director for an upcoming biopic of Michael Jackson need not look too far for casting—he’ll just hire the pop star’s “son” to play him in the new film.

Omer Bhatti, whom the late King of Pop told friends he had fathered, will play Michael in a movie charting his rise to superstardom in the ‘80s.

A source told Britain’s The Sun, “Michael’s story from childhood to the height of success is nothing short of astounding. The family feel fans would love to see a dramatic retelling. They want to cover his childhood and family life but really focus on when his career went into overdrive.”

Although Norwegian Omer, who has worked as a Michael Jackson impersonator, denies that Michael is his biological father, he has revealed that the singer used to tell him he was “like a son” to him.

He has also been welcomed by the Jackson family and sat in the front row at Michaels’ Los Angeles memorial service in July. Since Michael’s death in June, Omer has reportedly stayed at the Jacksons’ California home.

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Michael Jackson Rehearsals to Become a Feature Film

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Sony, Music, Celeb News, Celebrity Gossip, Upcoming Releases

UPDATE: According to reports, Sony and AEG Live have set the release date for Halloween week: Friday, Oct. 30.

Sony is looking to purchase the 80-plus hours of Michael Jackson rehearsal footage to create a new movie on the King of Pop. The footage, which was shot while the singer was working on his London act, is currently owned by AEG Entertainment.

According to Variety, the rights could easily cost $50 million.

If all goes well, the new movie might be released before the end of the year.

Read More | Perez Hilton

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LaToya Jackson Scene Removed from Bruno

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Universal, Comedy, Celeb News, Upcoming Releases

Sacha Baron Cohen may be known for pushing the boundaries, but he won’t - at least in this situation - be labeled insensitive.

Shortly after Michael Jackson’s death, the producers of Borat made quick edits before their film’s premiere. A scene that featured a Jackson sibling was cut from the film.

“Out of respect for the Jackson family, the filmmakers have decided to remove a small scene involving La Toya Jackson,” a Universal Pictures spokesperson said.

In previous screenings, critics saw the flamboyant title character trick Michael’s sister doing an interview with him. Bruno then went on to talk about the King of Pop’s high-pitched voice and trademark glove. He also attempted to retrieve the singer’s number from LaToya’s cell phone.

Although it was initially unsure whether the edit would be temporary, the studio confirmed today that the scene would be left out of the theatrical release.

Bruno opens on July 10.

Read More | Hollywood Reporter

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