Box Office Report - April 9-11 (for now?)

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1. Date Night - $27.1 million

2. Clash of the Titans - $26.875 million

3. How to Train Your Dragon - $25.3 million

4. Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too? - $11 million

5. The Last Song - $10 million

6. Alice in Wonderland - $5.6 million

7. Hot Tub Time Machine - $5.4 million

8. The Bounty Hunter - $4.3 million

9. Diary of a Wimpy Kid - $4.1 million

10. Letters to God - $1.2 million

The final weekend box office is turning into a clash of the studios as both Warner Bros and 20th Century Fox are in dispute on whether or not Date Night really did trump Clash of the Titans, but since final numbers will not be in until tomorrow, this is what's being reported...and we're sticking to it (for now).

Either way, it turned out to be a solid weekend for Steve Carell and Tina Fey, whose $55 million comedy Date Night opened with at least $27 million, which is a career opening weekend high for Fey, but not so much for Carell - Get Smart opened in 2008 with $38 million.  Even if it does drop to second place when the actuals come in tomorrow, Fox does seem happy with the results.

Not surprisingly, Clash of the Titans took a 56% drop in its second weekend, bringing its domestic total to $110 million.  That's a steep drop, however, it's not nearly as bad at the 60% or more drop some insiders were projecting for this weekend.  Its total worldwide box office is now $229 million.

Regardless of who winds up at the #1 spot this weekend, it's looking like the real box office champ is Dreamworks' How to Train Your Dragon, which declined a mere 13%, thanks to what appears to be spectacular word-of-mouth (including mine, I've seen this film twice and I can't say enough good things about it) and making its lackluster opening weekend a distant memory.  Its box office total is now $134 million and could be headed for a $200 million total domestically.

Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too? took an even bigger tumble than Clash this weekend, a 62% drop with $11 million.  But with a budget of roughly $20 million and a total domestic gross of $48 million in just one week...that drop really doesn't even matter.  It's another hit for Tyler Perry.

Miley Cyrus' drama The Last Song also managed to hang in there this weekend, dropping only 37% and staying in the top 5 with $10 million, bringing its domestic total to $42 million.  Looks like Miley managed to survive some pretty scathing reviews and wind up with a decent hit film after all.

Alice in Wonderland also managed to have another solid weekend, coming in at #5 with $5.6 million.  Its domestic total now stands at $319 million, and its worldwide total stands at a staggering $780 million. 

The other new release of the weekend was Vivendi Entertainment's Christian-themed Letters to God.  Opening in just 897 theaters, the film managed to make a respectable $1.2 million and just make its way into the #10 spot.

We'll be checking when the weekend actuals come in to see if we need to change the picture at the top of the page.  Hell, if they can't figure it out by then we may just change it to a How to Train Your Dragon shot, since we know that one is doing well.

Bayer and Haley on 'Nightmare Remake'

The last time we saw Freddy Krueger, it wasn’t pretty. That film, 2003’s ‘Freddy vs. Jason’, was a half-baked attempt to extend the expiration dates of two of Holly-woods biggest, bloodiest baddies of the 1980s. Unfortunately, it was also god-awful. SO you might be wondering whether it’s too soon to resurrect a certain disfigured dude in a red-and-green-striped sweater.

Well, we’ll know the answer in April 30, when ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ hits theatres. “It’s time to wipe the slate clean,” says Samuel Bayer, director of the new Nightmare. “Freddy started out as a pretty frightening character, but in the end he became slapstick. I mean, you can only tell so many jokes as you’re killing someone. We wanted to make him really scary and nasty again.”

The biggest surprise for fans of the series may be the absence of Robert Englund, the 62-year old actor whore the fedora and razor-fingered glove in all eight previous instalments. In his place is Jackie Earle Haley, best known for his haunting, Oscar-nominated turn in ‘Little Children’ and for playing the equally creepy Rorschach in ‘Watchmen’. “This is really scary for me because Robert owns Freddy,” says Haley, 48. “It’s daunting to step into those shoes, but also really exciting because it’s such an iconic character.”

Bayer promises that his “Nightmare” update will stick close to Wes Craven’s 1984 original, with up-and-comers Rooney Mara and Kyle Gallner stepping in for Heather Langenkamp and Johhny Depp as teens being stalked while they sleep. “We wanted to make this realistic... or as realistic as a film about a guy who kills you in your dreams can be. We also wanted to show the origin of how Fred Krueger became Freddy Kreuger.”

For his part, Haley says he watched the silent horror classic ‘Nosferatu’ and read up on serial killers to get into the mutilated murderer’s mindset. But it was only when he sat in the makeup chair-a process that took four hours every day- that he realized, “this is a campfire tale and Freddy’s the boheyman!” That’s also when it hit him that no matter how good he is as Freddy, the knives will be out. “Of course I’m worried about that,” says the actor. “But they were going to have to get someone to play Freddy. And since they were going to, why not me?”

Jon Tenney is 'Green Lanterns' Dad

SuperHeroHype learned exclusively on Saturday that "The Closer" star Jon Tenney will play Hal Jordan's dad, test pilot Martin H. Jordan, in director Martin Campbell's 'Green Lantern'.

Tenney had the following to say:

"'The Closer's' letting me shoot off in June a little bit, and I'm doing a little picture called 'Green Lantern,' and that will be fun!

"Ryan Reynolds is the Green Lantern, and when he is a young boy, like 11, I'm his father. I'm Hal Jordan's dad. I'm very excited – it's incredible company," he said when asked who he is playing.

Head over to SuperHeroHype for the full story.

Logan Lerman is Spider-Man!

It wasnt that long ago that Logan Lerman blabbed about his being cast as the new Spider-Man, but shortly after everyone from the studio to his own people denied the claims. Apparently it was all true...

HitFix reports the 'Percy Jackson' star is "almost 100% locked" to headline the newly rebooted franchise under the direction of Marc Webb.

 

Cinema Source came out after all of this had died down and flat out said, "No, this Lerman kid is the new Spider-Man!"

I think everyone can agree his performance in Percy Jackson was no where near great, but on the other hand he gave a great performance as Christian Bales son in the western 3:10 to Yuma. I think its going to come down to how well the script is written and what Webb is able to do with it, Lerman obviously has the talent to play the role, lets just hope he shows everyone that come 2012 when the Spider-Man swings back into theaters.

3 NEW 'NIghtmare On Elm Street' Tv Spots!

Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema has unrolled three brand new TV spots for "A Nightmare on Elm Street", their remake arrives in theaters April 30. To get a clean view of the bus stop poster as well, head over to Bloodydisgusting.

I was huge fan of the original series growing up, I own the boxset on dvd and I've been following this remake closely since it was first announced. I know a lot of fans have been divided by the choice to remake the original, half of us are loving the idea of a fresh take on dream killer Freddy Kreuger, while the other half of the loyal fan base has been dreading this; for reasons ranging from Robert Englund the original Freddy now 62 years old being recast by Oscar winning actor Jackie Earl Hailie.

Regardless of your position on the remake, whether your a fan of the original looking forward to the remake, you've been dreading it from the start, or your a new fan to the series, you cant tell me after seeing this newest batch of tv spots your not completely convinced/ pumped for this reincarnation of arguably one of the scariest horror icons to grace the big screen.

Check back to TMT closer to the release date for my official review of the new "Nightmare On Elm Street"

Pirates of The Caribbean 4 : The Curse of 3D

With 3D being all the craze now in Hollywood, we have to wonder about such big blockbusters as the new Pirates of the Caribbean 4 set for a 2011 release. Will Pirates 4 be shot in or converted to 3D? Hunter over at Blue Sky Disney clears things up:

The answer is both. Huh, you say? Well, the majority of the Walt Disney Pictures film will be shot in third dimension. Almost all the actor bits and dramatic scenes and all. A good two-thirds of the film will be captured that way. The remaining FX parts of the film will be shot in normal 2D and then converted to 3D. The final result of which will be ALL 3D, of course.

You can read the full story HERE.

I personally am NOT a fan of the gimmicky 3D craze going on right now in Hollywood, I may be one of a small group of people that thought Avatar was garbage, but I still believe the only reason 3D is being used so prominently now in what seems like every big budget movie, is because of the success of movies like Avatar based, which relied on the increased prices of 3D tickets, and not on the technological advances such film making is said to have achieved, which in my opinion is sad. I don't support the 3D trend at all, in even worse cases, you end up with movies like the recent remake Clash of The Titans which was converted to 3D in post production, WOW, what a terrible idea that was, I applaud you if you were able to sit through that entire movie without getting a headache or just being flat out annoyed with the pathetic visuals.

What are your thoughts, should every big budget movie be offered in 3D? Or should it only be so long as the majority if not all of the film was actually shot in/ intended to be 3D to begin with and not converted in post production, or does it make any difference to you at all?

Possible Plot Details Revealed for James Bond 23? UPDATE:(False)

Screenrant reports, according to one of their sources they may have revealed possible plot details for the upcoming Bond sequel to Quantum of Solice. Some have questioned whether or not Bond 23 would even be made at all what with MGM's current financial situation, However the cash strapped studio has entered into another round of auctions with a handful of potential bidders, So things are staring to look up for the plagued studio.

Daniel Craig previously said he thought that shooting would start late 2010, I’m sure we’ll hear something concrete regarding casting and/or script details in the next couple of months.

Or maybe we’ll start hearing something now, the following is what their source had to say:

*Begin Rumor*

According to our source, despite the uncertainty with MGM studios, EON Productions has, in fact, been having behind-the-scenes script and casting discussions for James Bond 23 for the past several months.  At this point, there is not a finished script but the story will involve having M’s (Judie Dench  ) job be on the line, partly because of Bond. His earlier actions also end up putting the entire Double O Section on notice.

Wanting to keep her job (in addition to being upset with Bond), M brings in a new, younger agent and creates some tension in the office by taking an assignment from Bond and giving it to her new hotshot.  The new guy is stylish, cocky and, of course, sexy – think a younger version of Bond. As you would expect, Bond starts out despising this new guy (who has yet to be named) but eventually they are forced to put their differences aside and work together to save the day.

Our source also says that the casting department has narrowed the list of potential candidates to play the new “00” agent to seven young actors, with Jamie Bell (The Adventures of Tintin) as the current favorite. Apparently, Daniel Craig is also keen on Bell getting the role.

*End Rumor*

Still to be considered as rumor only, there are some important possible plot details revealed as well as a potential new cast member. What do you think? how would you feel about 'James Bond 23' having a little friendly rivalry mixed into the next story?

Update on Sat, April 10, 2010 by Mitch Anderson

Update: Screenrant themselves has dismissed this rumor as False. Apparently some jackass was sending the story to anyone and everyone who would listen purposely spreading a fake rumor, what a douche bag! If you would like to let him know just how much an Asshole he is they have provided his email: jbradford1881@yahoo.com

Ridley Scott protégé Involved in Bidding War?

You may have heard the name Carl Erik Rinsch before, He's one of the directors at RSA, Ridley and Tony Scott's company.

Five of RSA's directors (Jake Scott, Greg Fay, Johnny Hardstaff, Carl Erik Rinsch, and Hi-Sim) are currently partnering with Phillips for a group of shorts called "Parallel Lines" which you can read about Here.

"Parallel Lines" has lead to a nifty-looking sci-fi short about a mystery box and an android chase through the streets of Russia. The short is called "The Gift". You can watch the video below:

The short ends somewhat ambiguously after featuring some fantastic integrated CG for a budget that is rumored to be in the tens of thousands of dollars (previous rumors had it budgeted slightly over $1 mil, but there's now some debate).

Rinsch was originally the director tapped for the "Alien" prequel before Ridley Scott decided to pick up that project himself. Now Rinsch is on the brink of his break in the public sphere and /Film might have just learned what's going to push him into the big leagues:

Yesterday word dropped that a bidding war had begun between several big Hollywood movie studios, including Warner Bros and Fox, to turn the short film into a feature. “It’s all happening.”
I have found out some more information. Apparently the movie studios aren’t interested in Rinsch developing a feature length adaptation of his short film The Gift…
They aren’t interested in developing a feature out of the short because, well, the feature film has already been developed.

That's right, there's an entire package ready to be made into a film with a "big budget look" for a low actual budget. It's working title is "Small." /Film even has some hi-rez concept art photos that Rinsch has paid for out of his own pocket. as Latino Review points out, a Self-financed development, budget-but-pretty CGI? Anyone else getting a Neil Blomkamp/D9 feeling out of this one?

I couldn't agree more, I'll be very interested to see what happens.

Teaser Trailer for Thriller 'Unthinkable'

The trailer for director Gregor Jordan's suspense thriller Unthinkable has come online and can be watched using the player below. The film, which does not have a release date yet, stars Samuel L. Jackson, Carrie-Anne Moss, Michael Sheen, Brandon Routh, Martin Donovan, Gil Bellows and Lora Kojovic.

The movie is described as follows:

Somewhere in the United States, three nuclear weapons are about to detonate. Younger (Sheen) has hidden the devices and the authorities lead by FBI agent Brody (Moss) with the help of "H" (Jackson), an interrogation specialist, must find them before time runs out. How far will they go to get the information they need and will they do the unthinkable?

If this is the first your hearing about this movie, you're not alone, I knew nothing about it until this morning when comingsoon released the first trailer. From the synopsis provided and the very short trailer its still hard to tell if this is headed for instant classic or predictable garbage. One things for sure, Sam Jackson looks awesome as per usual, so I'm sure it'll gain a fair amount of interest just based on his involvement alone.

Hopefully we'll have an official release date and a full length trailer soon, so check back here at TMT for that.

30 Years of "Empire"

Ugh, now I'm sad I let my subscription to Entertainment Weekly run out.  Actually, I'm really not that upset about it, but this would have been a cool issue to find in the mailbox this week:

To celebrate the 30th Anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back, this week's issue of EW will feature excerpts from Lucasfilm's new book Star Wars: The Making of The Empire Strikes Back, including never-before-seen set photos, early character sketches of Yoda and Boba Fett, and an original script page.  

In other words...I NEED THIS BOOK!  (which will arrive in bookstores this October)

I actually saw Empire in theaters when it was first released, so all of this anniversary business is making me feel a bit old.  But I'm not sad about it, because I got to see the "I am your Father" scene before anyone knew it was going to happen.  Of course I was kindergarten and terrified of Darth Vader at the time, but the resulting emotional scars were a small price to pay for the awesomeness of seeing the original Star Wars trilogy during its first release.