Pirates 3, Spider-Man 3, Shrek The Third - What film will gross the most?
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A while ago I posted (mostly as a joke and I think it was in this thread) that we would probably see a Spider-Man 4 with Sinister Six, Scarlet Spider and Black Cat just so they could even more toys. And look what Sam Raimi says in an interview:
Either way, if this tangled web does still involve the filmmaker, Raimi has been busy brainstorming about the villains he'd like to get into the next flick. "I would love to see Electro, Vulture, maybe the Sinister Six as a team," he said.
Either way, if this tangled web does still involve the filmmaker, Raimi has been busy brainstorming about the villains he'd like to get into the next flick. "I would love to see Electro, Vulture, maybe the Sinister Six as a team," he said.
Darth Elektra
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Yep, AWE should take the lead after this weekend.
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Shrek the Third has releases all the way in mid July so we won't really know the answer to the WW question til like the end of the Summer. By then, Harry Potter or even Transformers can take the WW crown.
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Comingsoon's weekend predictions:
1. Ratatouille (Disney/Pixar) - $62.4 million N/A
2. Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) - $39.6 million N/A
3. Evan Almighty (Universal) - $14.8 million -53%
4. 1408 (Dimension) - $11.3 million -45%
5. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (20th Century Fox) - $9.2 million -54%
6. SICKO (The Weinstein Company/Lionsgate) - $7.2 million N/A (Note: At the time of this writing, there's nothing close to estimated theatre counts, so this is essentially a wild guess.)
7. Knocked Up (Universal) - $7.1 million -35%
8. Ocean's Thirteen (Warner Bros.) - $6.0 million -47%
9. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Disney) - $3.5 million -52%
10. Surf's Up (Sony) - $3.4 million -48%
1. Ratatouille (Disney/Pixar) - $62.4 million N/A
2. Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) - $39.6 million N/A
3. Evan Almighty (Universal) - $14.8 million -53%
4. 1408 (Dimension) - $11.3 million -45%
5. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (20th Century Fox) - $9.2 million -54%
6. SICKO (The Weinstein Company/Lionsgate) - $7.2 million N/A (Note: At the time of this writing, there's nothing close to estimated theatre counts, so this is essentially a wild guess.)
7. Knocked Up (Universal) - $7.1 million -35%
8. Ocean's Thirteen (Warner Bros.) - $6.0 million -47%
9. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Disney) - $3.5 million -52%
10. Surf's Up (Sony) - $3.4 million -48%
Darth Elektra
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Hollywood's hope for record summer fades
April's rosy forecast that Hollywood would reap a record $4 billion at the box office this summer has been replaced by hopes of merely keeping pace with 2006 as Friday's midpoint of the season nears.
Blame it on the old guys of "Ocean's Thirteen," God in "Evan Almighty" or simply the widely hyped sequels like "Spider-Man 3" that opened to huge ticket sales but failed to keep audiences returning the way their predecessors did.
"It's time to rein in the expectations or, at least, make them more modest," said Paul Dergarabedian of box office tracker Media By Numbers.
Hollywood's summer, which runs from early May to the end of August, is critical for the major movie studios because they can generate up to 40 percent of annual ticket sales.
But box office watchers are now trimming seasonal estimates in the United States and Canada after this past weekend's stumble by Christian comedy "Evan Almighty," whose debut weekend tally of $31 million was less than half the $68 million opening of its predecessor, "Bruce Almighty."
"Ocean's Thirteen" starring Brad Pitt, 43, and George Clooney, 46, also failed to catch fire with many of the younger moviegoers who typically turn out in the summer.
"Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" all debuted strongly, but faded faster than expected. Most box office watchers now believe all three will top the $300 million mark, but likely fail to match the final tallies of their series' second movies.
JULY TRANSFORMATION?
Heading into Friday's kids movie "Ratatouille" and action flick "Live Free or Die Hard" with Bruce Willis," U.S. and Canadian domestic ticket sales stand at $1.6 billion, up 3.68 percent from 2006, but attendance at 244.6 million is roughly equal to 2006, according to Media by Numbers.
Ticket sales for summer 2006 totaled $3.85 billion.
Boxofficemojo.com President Brandon Gray reckons that to get to $4 billion by end of August, summer ticket sales would have to reach nearly $2 billion by the end of this week.
"It looks like we're headed to about $1.82 billion," Gray said. He gave the notion of besting 2004's $3.95 billion record summer only a "slim chance."
Still, box office watchers see rays of hope in summer's second half due to several widely hyped movies starting with the July 4's action flick "Transformers" and followed by July 11's "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."
"Transformers," the movie about aliens who transform into cars and battle their rivals on Earth, enjoys a loyal fan base among young men who also make up the core moviegoing audience.
Likewise, the "Harry Potter" movies have proven to be huge crowd pleasers in past years. Overall, the four previous films in the series have raked in more than $3.5 billion worldwide.
Other top titles in July include musical "Hairspray" based on the Broadway production about an overweight teen-ager who dances her way to local TV stardom, and "The Simpsons Movie," which is derived from the long-running hit TV cartoon.
Big stars are on the way, too, with Adam Sandler in comedy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" and Lindsay Lohan in thriller "I Know Who Killed Me."
Finally, more than in previous years the traditionally slow month of August is loaded with movies that could be break-out hits, such as action-adventure "The Bourne Ultimatum," comedy "Rush Hour 3" and fantasy "Stardust."
April's rosy forecast that Hollywood would reap a record $4 billion at the box office this summer has been replaced by hopes of merely keeping pace with 2006 as Friday's midpoint of the season nears.
Blame it on the old guys of "Ocean's Thirteen," God in "Evan Almighty" or simply the widely hyped sequels like "Spider-Man 3" that opened to huge ticket sales but failed to keep audiences returning the way their predecessors did.
"It's time to rein in the expectations or, at least, make them more modest," said Paul Dergarabedian of box office tracker Media By Numbers.
Hollywood's summer, which runs from early May to the end of August, is critical for the major movie studios because they can generate up to 40 percent of annual ticket sales.
But box office watchers are now trimming seasonal estimates in the United States and Canada after this past weekend's stumble by Christian comedy "Evan Almighty," whose debut weekend tally of $31 million was less than half the $68 million opening of its predecessor, "Bruce Almighty."
"Ocean's Thirteen" starring Brad Pitt, 43, and George Clooney, 46, also failed to catch fire with many of the younger moviegoers who typically turn out in the summer.
"Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" all debuted strongly, but faded faster than expected. Most box office watchers now believe all three will top the $300 million mark, but likely fail to match the final tallies of their series' second movies.
JULY TRANSFORMATION?
Heading into Friday's kids movie "Ratatouille" and action flick "Live Free or Die Hard" with Bruce Willis," U.S. and Canadian domestic ticket sales stand at $1.6 billion, up 3.68 percent from 2006, but attendance at 244.6 million is roughly equal to 2006, according to Media by Numbers.
Ticket sales for summer 2006 totaled $3.85 billion.
Boxofficemojo.com President Brandon Gray reckons that to get to $4 billion by end of August, summer ticket sales would have to reach nearly $2 billion by the end of this week.
"It looks like we're headed to about $1.82 billion," Gray said. He gave the notion of besting 2004's $3.95 billion record summer only a "slim chance."
Still, box office watchers see rays of hope in summer's second half due to several widely hyped movies starting with the July 4's action flick "Transformers" and followed by July 11's "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."
"Transformers," the movie about aliens who transform into cars and battle their rivals on Earth, enjoys a loyal fan base among young men who also make up the core moviegoing audience.
Likewise, the "Harry Potter" movies have proven to be huge crowd pleasers in past years. Overall, the four previous films in the series have raked in more than $3.5 billion worldwide.
Other top titles in July include musical "Hairspray" based on the Broadway production about an overweight teen-ager who dances her way to local TV stardom, and "The Simpsons Movie," which is derived from the long-running hit TV cartoon.
Big stars are on the way, too, with Adam Sandler in comedy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" and Lindsay Lohan in thriller "I Know Who Killed Me."
Finally, more than in previous years the traditionally slow month of August is loaded with movies that could be break-out hits, such as action-adventure "The Bourne Ultimatum," comedy "Rush Hour 3" and fantasy "Stardust."
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EXCLUSIVE: Weekend plan for 'Sicko' set; Moore doc will expand to 350-450 locations and should grab $7M-$10M; Distributors hope to build buzz for wide release.
As of Monday night, Lionsgate and the Weinsteins are close to finalizing their Sicko strategy for this weekend.
The Michael Moore documentary about the American healthcare system opened at one location Friday (June 22), and there were 50 exclusive Saturday night sneak previews. The theatrical engagement at the Loews Lincoln Square Theatres on the Upper West Side in Manhattan delivered a staggering $68,969 (with $23,576 on Friday, $24,839 on Saturday and $20,554 on Sunday). Meanwhile, the 50 sneaks, in 27 major markets where Moore's previous films have performed well, were a huge success. My sources tell me that all 50 sneaks were either sold out or near-capacity, and there were incidents of people scalping tickets. You might think that, with numbers like these, you can just roll the film out on 1,200 screens and start counting the money. Nailing down a release plan for Sicko hasn't been nearly so simple.
In the most recent industry tracking, Sicko has Un-Aided Awareness, always a good measure of buzz and anticipation, of just 1 percent. In fact, as of Sunday, only 47 percent of Americans had even heard of this critically-acclaimed doc. The Awareness among Males 25 Plus is 61 percent and with Females 25 Plus it's 56 percent, but only 33 percent of Males Under 25 and 37 percent of Females Under 25 are aware of this movie. Overall Definite Interest is at just 20 percent (Males Under 25 at 14 percent, Males 25 Plus at 20 percent, Females Under 25 at 21 percent and Females 25 Plus at 24 percent) and only 4 percent of moviegoers surveyed describe Sicko as their First Choice this coming weekend (Males Under 25 at 2 percent, Males 25 Plus at 3 percent, Females Under 25 at 2 percent and Females 25 Plus at 7 percent).
In short, Sicko isn't ready for a wide release. The plan was never to go out wide this coming weekend. At most, Lionsgate and the Weinsteins were going to expand to 600 runs, but they have officially cut back on that number. My sources tell me that Sicko will be at 350-450 locations starting Friday, along with 50 or so more locations in Canada. These locations are being carefully screened. By choosing locations where Michael Moore films have performed well in the past, and which are located either in major cities or in areas with a significant number of people over 50, the movie will generate more buzz. By making prints fairly scarce Sicko gets more positive reviews and another round of national stories about sold-out screenings. By next Monday, industry tracking will improve enough to expand to more markets.
In my estimation, Lionsgate and Bob and Harvey Weinstein are dead right to handle Sicko in this carefully calibrated way. There is no reason why this seemingly non-partisan movie from an Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker can't deliver $20,000-$25,000 per location this weekend and an estimated $7 million-$10 million. That will be the perfect springboard to take Moore's healthcare message much wider through the month of July.
As for Monday, Sicko added another $12,696 at the Loews Lincoln Square.
As of Monday night, Lionsgate and the Weinsteins are close to finalizing their Sicko strategy for this weekend.
The Michael Moore documentary about the American healthcare system opened at one location Friday (June 22), and there were 50 exclusive Saturday night sneak previews. The theatrical engagement at the Loews Lincoln Square Theatres on the Upper West Side in Manhattan delivered a staggering $68,969 (with $23,576 on Friday, $24,839 on Saturday and $20,554 on Sunday). Meanwhile, the 50 sneaks, in 27 major markets where Moore's previous films have performed well, were a huge success. My sources tell me that all 50 sneaks were either sold out or near-capacity, and there were incidents of people scalping tickets. You might think that, with numbers like these, you can just roll the film out on 1,200 screens and start counting the money. Nailing down a release plan for Sicko hasn't been nearly so simple.
In the most recent industry tracking, Sicko has Un-Aided Awareness, always a good measure of buzz and anticipation, of just 1 percent. In fact, as of Sunday, only 47 percent of Americans had even heard of this critically-acclaimed doc. The Awareness among Males 25 Plus is 61 percent and with Females 25 Plus it's 56 percent, but only 33 percent of Males Under 25 and 37 percent of Females Under 25 are aware of this movie. Overall Definite Interest is at just 20 percent (Males Under 25 at 14 percent, Males 25 Plus at 20 percent, Females Under 25 at 21 percent and Females 25 Plus at 24 percent) and only 4 percent of moviegoers surveyed describe Sicko as their First Choice this coming weekend (Males Under 25 at 2 percent, Males 25 Plus at 3 percent, Females Under 25 at 2 percent and Females 25 Plus at 7 percent).
In short, Sicko isn't ready for a wide release. The plan was never to go out wide this coming weekend. At most, Lionsgate and the Weinsteins were going to expand to 600 runs, but they have officially cut back on that number. My sources tell me that Sicko will be at 350-450 locations starting Friday, along with 50 or so more locations in Canada. These locations are being carefully screened. By choosing locations where Michael Moore films have performed well in the past, and which are located either in major cities or in areas with a significant number of people over 50, the movie will generate more buzz. By making prints fairly scarce Sicko gets more positive reviews and another round of national stories about sold-out screenings. By next Monday, industry tracking will improve enough to expand to more markets.
In my estimation, Lionsgate and Bob and Harvey Weinstein are dead right to handle Sicko in this carefully calibrated way. There is no reason why this seemingly non-partisan movie from an Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker can't deliver $20,000-$25,000 per location this weekend and an estimated $7 million-$10 million. That will be the perfect springboard to take Moore's healthcare message much wider through the month of July.
As for Monday, Sicko added another $12,696 at the Loews Lincoln Square.
Darth Elektra
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WEDNESDAY ESTIMATES: 'Die Hard' w/$8.8M Wednesday, Headed for a 5-day of $34M-$37M
by Steve Mason
THURSDAY MORNING UPDATE (as of 9:00 a.m., Pacific)
Last night, I called Live Free or Die Hard's opening day for $8 million. As of this morning, I'm revising the Wednesday number to $8.8 million. $34 million-$37 million still looks like the correct range for the five-day take, and the traditional three-day weekend mark should still fall in the $20 million-$23 million range.
SECOND WEDNESDAY UPDATE (as of 10:30 p.m., Pacific)
In my original column about Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) (see below), I projected a Wednesday number in the $8 million-$10 million range. I now believe that DH4 will finish the day closer to $8 million (maybe even a tick lower). If that number holds up, the film will likely score an estimated five-day take of $34 million-$37 million and a probable three-day haul of $20 million-$23 million. Please note: I have a lower-than-usual degree of confidence in my Wednesday number for Die Hard. I've gotten some conflicting news from my usual sources.
EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY WEDNESDAY ESTIMATES
1. Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) -- $8 million [$8 million cume]
2. Evan Almighty (Universal) -- $2.88 million [$41.6 million cume]
3. 1408 (MGM/Weinstein) -- $1.69 million [$27.4 million cume]
4. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (20th Century Fox) -- $1.63 million [$103.6 million cume]
5. Knocked Up (Universal) -- $1.17 million [$113.4 million cume]
6. Ocean's Thirteen (Warner Bros.) -- $932,000 [$94.7 million cume]
7. Surf's Up (Sony) -- $924,000 [$50.1 million cume]
8. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Buena Vista) -- $782,000 [$289.6 million cume]
9. Nancy Drew (Warner Bros.) -- $711,000 million [$18.3 million cume]
10. Shrek the Third (Dreamworks/Paramount) -- $700,000 [$310.1 million cume]
WEDNESDAY UPDATE
Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) is off to a solid start, but it's not headed for the box office stratosphere. One of my studio sources puts the movie's opening Wednesday at $8 million-$10 million and another says $8 million is the ceiling. If the $8 million-$10 million range holds up, it's fair to expect $35 million-$42 million for five days and $21.5 million-$25 million for the three-day. As recently as yesterday, one of my sources felt that $50 million for five days was possible and others were forecasting a number in the high $40 million, so this is a step down from those lofty predictions.
After the disappointing opening of Ocean's Thirteen (Warner Bros.) and the disastrous debut of Evan Almighty (Universal), Hollywood's surefire summer has stalled. Back in May, a fair number of box office analysts were calling for $4 billion in sales, topping the all-time record summer of $3.95 billion in 2004. In Bob Tourtellotte's Tuesday story on Reuters, Brandon Gray from Box Office Mojo that there's says only a "slim chance" of breaking the all-time summer record, but, in my estimation, the odds could go have gone way up with a meteoric performance by an aging John McClane and the newest Die Hard.
With sure things like Transformers (Dreamworks/Paramount) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Warner Bros.) on the horizon, it's not too late for Hollywood to get its gravy train back on track ... but it won't happen now without a breakout success for Ratatouille (Buena Vista), which invades America's multiplexes Friday (June 29). Unfortunately, that may be an uphill climb even for mighty Pixar. I'll cover Ratatouille, along with Evening (Focus) and Sicko (Lionsgate/Weinstein), in my Thursday tracking column.
Maybe, we've all been expecting too much from old man Bruce Willis and the Die Hard franchise. It's been almost two decades since the original franchise-starter, recently named the best action film of all-time by Entertainment Weekly, and seven years since Die Hard: With a Vengeance. The performance of the first three Die Hard films isn't as strong as you might think.
1988 -- Die Hard: $600,000 opening, $83 million cume
1990 -- Die Hard 2: Die Harder: $21.7 million opening, $117.5 million cume
1995 -- Die Hard: With a Vengeance: $22.1 million opening, $100 million cume
In fact, Bruce Willis's all-time top two openings are as a voice in Over the Hedge and in Michael Bay's Armageddon, and he didn't "open" those movies -- some cute cartoon animals and a huge asteroid did. This durable star actually only has five openings of $25 million-plus and only five of his films have topped $100 million.
by Steve Mason
THURSDAY MORNING UPDATE (as of 9:00 a.m., Pacific)
Last night, I called Live Free or Die Hard's opening day for $8 million. As of this morning, I'm revising the Wednesday number to $8.8 million. $34 million-$37 million still looks like the correct range for the five-day take, and the traditional three-day weekend mark should still fall in the $20 million-$23 million range.
SECOND WEDNESDAY UPDATE (as of 10:30 p.m., Pacific)
In my original column about Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) (see below), I projected a Wednesday number in the $8 million-$10 million range. I now believe that DH4 will finish the day closer to $8 million (maybe even a tick lower). If that number holds up, the film will likely score an estimated five-day take of $34 million-$37 million and a probable three-day haul of $20 million-$23 million. Please note: I have a lower-than-usual degree of confidence in my Wednesday number for Die Hard. I've gotten some conflicting news from my usual sources.
EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY WEDNESDAY ESTIMATES
1. Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) -- $8 million [$8 million cume]
2. Evan Almighty (Universal) -- $2.88 million [$41.6 million cume]
3. 1408 (MGM/Weinstein) -- $1.69 million [$27.4 million cume]
4. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (20th Century Fox) -- $1.63 million [$103.6 million cume]
5. Knocked Up (Universal) -- $1.17 million [$113.4 million cume]
6. Ocean's Thirteen (Warner Bros.) -- $932,000 [$94.7 million cume]
7. Surf's Up (Sony) -- $924,000 [$50.1 million cume]
8. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Buena Vista) -- $782,000 [$289.6 million cume]
9. Nancy Drew (Warner Bros.) -- $711,000 million [$18.3 million cume]
10. Shrek the Third (Dreamworks/Paramount) -- $700,000 [$310.1 million cume]
WEDNESDAY UPDATE
Live Free or Die Hard (20th Century Fox) is off to a solid start, but it's not headed for the box office stratosphere. One of my studio sources puts the movie's opening Wednesday at $8 million-$10 million and another says $8 million is the ceiling. If the $8 million-$10 million range holds up, it's fair to expect $35 million-$42 million for five days and $21.5 million-$25 million for the three-day. As recently as yesterday, one of my sources felt that $50 million for five days was possible and others were forecasting a number in the high $40 million, so this is a step down from those lofty predictions.
After the disappointing opening of Ocean's Thirteen (Warner Bros.) and the disastrous debut of Evan Almighty (Universal), Hollywood's surefire summer has stalled. Back in May, a fair number of box office analysts were calling for $4 billion in sales, topping the all-time record summer of $3.95 billion in 2004. In Bob Tourtellotte's Tuesday story on Reuters, Brandon Gray from Box Office Mojo that there's says only a "slim chance" of breaking the all-time summer record, but, in my estimation, the odds could go have gone way up with a meteoric performance by an aging John McClane and the newest Die Hard.
With sure things like Transformers (Dreamworks/Paramount) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Warner Bros.) on the horizon, it's not too late for Hollywood to get its gravy train back on track ... but it won't happen now without a breakout success for Ratatouille (Buena Vista), which invades America's multiplexes Friday (June 29). Unfortunately, that may be an uphill climb even for mighty Pixar. I'll cover Ratatouille, along with Evening (Focus) and Sicko (Lionsgate/Weinstein), in my Thursday tracking column.
Maybe, we've all been expecting too much from old man Bruce Willis and the Die Hard franchise. It's been almost two decades since the original franchise-starter, recently named the best action film of all-time by Entertainment Weekly, and seven years since Die Hard: With a Vengeance. The performance of the first three Die Hard films isn't as strong as you might think.
1988 -- Die Hard: $600,000 opening, $83 million cume
1990 -- Die Hard 2: Die Harder: $21.7 million opening, $117.5 million cume
1995 -- Die Hard: With a Vengeance: $22.1 million opening, $100 million cume
In fact, Bruce Willis's all-time top two openings are as a voice in Over the Hedge and in Michael Bay's Armageddon, and he didn't "open" those movies -- some cute cartoon animals and a huge asteroid did. This durable star actually only has five openings of $25 million-plus and only five of his films have topped $100 million.
Darth Elektra
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Another article on the numbers...
"Die Hard" chases down $9.1 mil in opening day
"Live Free or Die Hard," the fourth installment in the "Die Hard" franchise, opened Wednesday to $9.1 million, but did not set any records, according to estimates issued by distributor 20th Century Fox.
Although it has been 12 years since Bruce Willis' cop John McClane has been called into action, the new film, carrying a PG-13 rating rather than the R attached to earlier films in the series, easily dominated the day's sales.
The current record-holder for an opening Wednesday is "Spider-Man 2," which bowed to a single-day gross of $40.4 million on June 30, 2004.
But Fox execs pronounced themselves pleased with both the day's opening number, which included some Tuesday night showings, as well as positive exit surveys. Rial studios also viewed the movie's bow as a strong showing.
"Die Hard" heads into a competitive weekend, where it will encounter Disney's Pixar production "Ratatouille," which is expected to take the top spot -- especially since some of "Die Hard's" prospective weekend audience will be siphoned off by its Wednesday and Thursday screenings. "Die Hard" is expected to capture the second slot in the weekend rankings.
"Die Hard" chases down $9.1 mil in opening day
"Live Free or Die Hard," the fourth installment in the "Die Hard" franchise, opened Wednesday to $9.1 million, but did not set any records, according to estimates issued by distributor 20th Century Fox.
Although it has been 12 years since Bruce Willis' cop John McClane has been called into action, the new film, carrying a PG-13 rating rather than the R attached to earlier films in the series, easily dominated the day's sales.
The current record-holder for an opening Wednesday is "Spider-Man 2," which bowed to a single-day gross of $40.4 million on June 30, 2004.
But Fox execs pronounced themselves pleased with both the day's opening number, which included some Tuesday night showings, as well as positive exit surveys. Rial studios also viewed the movie's bow as a strong showing.
"Die Hard" heads into a competitive weekend, where it will encounter Disney's Pixar production "Ratatouille," which is expected to take the top spot -- especially since some of "Die Hard's" prospective weekend audience will be siphoned off by its Wednesday and Thursday screenings. "Die Hard" is expected to capture the second slot in the weekend rankings.
Darth Elektra
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"Transformers" film yields big bang on fewer bucks
They call a $150 million movie low-budget?
"Transformers," based on toy aliens disguised as cars, debuts worldwide next Tuesday as a major Hollywood production that delivers big bangs for fewer bucks than comparable films, its makers say.
It is loaded with the kinds of effects, computer imagery and explosive stunts that in recent years has pushed the price of some movies beyond $200 million and, in the case of "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," to $300 million.
But the producers of "Transformers," Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Ian Bryce, say they have spent only $150 million on "Transformers," and they reckon they got a bargain.
Good early reviews and positive advance buzz could mean strong ticket sales for "Transformers" and show the rest of Hollywood that crowd-pleasing action movies can be made at a lower cost which, in turn, might spur more of them.
"We wanted to prove you could make a big movie and not cost what many of those other big movies cost," di Bonaventura said in an interview.
In 1984, Hasbro Inc. launched a set of 21 toys that, when twisted and turned, transformed into alien robots. The toys' mythology told of good aliens called Autobots, led by Optimus Prime, battling evil Decepticons, whose chief was Megatron.
Autobots want to live peacefully, but Decepticons want to destroy Autobots. If humans get in the way, tough luck.
The toys became wildly popular and gained a cult-like following among young men and women who, generally speaking, make up the core audience for major Hollywood action movies.
TRANSFORMING "TRANSFORMERS"
For years, the challenge of making a Transformers film was how to realistically and cost-effectively create 32-foot (9.7-metre) robots that could interact with humans on movie screens.
The increasing use of digital technology and the expertise of the film's makers -- including executive producer Steven Spielberg and director Michael Bay ("Armageddon" and "Pearl Harbor") -- took care of that.
Add low cost, rising young stars Shia LaBeouf and newcomer Megan Fox to the mix and, faster than a studio executive can ask, "How about Johnny Depp or Cameron Diaz?" Paramount Pictures and Dreamworks signed on to make "Transformers."
"We made a decision not to go after the $10 to $20 million people," said di Bonaventura.
The special effects wizards at Industrial Light & Magic wrote new computer software to transform 50-piece plastic models into digital robots with 10,108 moving parts.
Finally, Bay said he shot the live-action sequences quickly and on a tight schedule to bring the movie in on budget.
"Transformers" takes audiences on a wild ride around the world with Decepticons chasing Autobots, who befriend a teen-age boy (LaBeouf) and his love interest (Fox). The U.S. military blows up just about everything in sight to get them all.
"It's 'Transformers' -- you can't take it too seriously," said Bay.
Audiences seem to be responding. Paramount moved up the global release by one day and is holding early screenings in the United States on Monday.
Critics like the film, too. "Michael Bay's actioner hits a new peak for CGI (computer generated images) work, showcasing spectacular chases and animated transformation sequences seamlessly blended into live-action surroundings," wrote Todd McCarthy in show business newspaper "Daily Variety."
They call a $150 million movie low-budget?
"Transformers," based on toy aliens disguised as cars, debuts worldwide next Tuesday as a major Hollywood production that delivers big bangs for fewer bucks than comparable films, its makers say.
It is loaded with the kinds of effects, computer imagery and explosive stunts that in recent years has pushed the price of some movies beyond $200 million and, in the case of "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," to $300 million.
But the producers of "Transformers," Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Ian Bryce, say they have spent only $150 million on "Transformers," and they reckon they got a bargain.
Good early reviews and positive advance buzz could mean strong ticket sales for "Transformers" and show the rest of Hollywood that crowd-pleasing action movies can be made at a lower cost which, in turn, might spur more of them.
"We wanted to prove you could make a big movie and not cost what many of those other big movies cost," di Bonaventura said in an interview.
In 1984, Hasbro Inc. launched a set of 21 toys that, when twisted and turned, transformed into alien robots. The toys' mythology told of good aliens called Autobots, led by Optimus Prime, battling evil Decepticons, whose chief was Megatron.
Autobots want to live peacefully, but Decepticons want to destroy Autobots. If humans get in the way, tough luck.
The toys became wildly popular and gained a cult-like following among young men and women who, generally speaking, make up the core audience for major Hollywood action movies.
TRANSFORMING "TRANSFORMERS"
For years, the challenge of making a Transformers film was how to realistically and cost-effectively create 32-foot (9.7-metre) robots that could interact with humans on movie screens.
The increasing use of digital technology and the expertise of the film's makers -- including executive producer Steven Spielberg and director Michael Bay ("Armageddon" and "Pearl Harbor") -- took care of that.
Add low cost, rising young stars Shia LaBeouf and newcomer Megan Fox to the mix and, faster than a studio executive can ask, "How about Johnny Depp or Cameron Diaz?" Paramount Pictures and Dreamworks signed on to make "Transformers."
"We made a decision not to go after the $10 to $20 million people," said di Bonaventura.
The special effects wizards at Industrial Light & Magic wrote new computer software to transform 50-piece plastic models into digital robots with 10,108 moving parts.
Finally, Bay said he shot the live-action sequences quickly and on a tight schedule to bring the movie in on budget.
"Transformers" takes audiences on a wild ride around the world with Decepticons chasing Autobots, who befriend a teen-age boy (LaBeouf) and his love interest (Fox). The U.S. military blows up just about everything in sight to get them all.
"It's 'Transformers' -- you can't take it too seriously," said Bay.
Audiences seem to be responding. Paramount moved up the global release by one day and is holding early screenings in the United States on Monday.
Critics like the film, too. "Michael Bay's actioner hits a new peak for CGI (computer generated images) work, showcasing spectacular chases and animated transformation sequences seamlessly blended into live-action surroundings," wrote Todd McCarthy in show business newspaper "Daily Variety."
Darth Elektra
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'Ratatouille' cooks up lukewarm box office win
The rodent cartoon "Ratatouille" raced to the top at the North American box office on Sunday but its weekend haul of $47.2 million was the lowest opening for a Pixar-produced release in nine years, according to estimates issued by distributor Walt Disney Co.
Opening weekend predictions among financial analysts for "Ratatouille" had ranged from $50 million to $65 million.
Pixar's previous release, "Cars," opened to $60.1 million a year ago, a figure regarded as something of a disappointment. "Cars" ended up with $244 million domestically.
If "Ratatouille" follows the same pattern, it will finish with about $189 million, becoming the third consecutive Pixar release to underperform its predecessor.
It would also be the lowest total for a Pixar movie since the studio's second effort, "A Bug's Life," which started with $33.3 million in 1998 and finished with $163 million. Pixar has produced eight features, starting with 1995's "Toy Story."
Disney is still proving to investors that last year's acquisition of Pixar is worth its $7.4 billion price tag. "Ratatouille" is the first Pixar film to be released that was still in production when the Disney-Pixar deal was sealed.
The story revolves around a Parisian rat who dreams of making it big as a chef. It was directed by Brad Bird, the man behind Pixar's 2004 film "The Incredibles."
That film holds the record for a Pixar opening with $70.5 million, although it lost steam and ended up with $261 million. Its 2003 predecessor, "Finding Nemo," remains the studio's box office champ with total sales of $340 million, following a $70.3 million start.
Opening at No. 2 at the weekend box office was the Bruce Willis action movie "Live Free Or Die Hard" with $33.2 million. Since opening on Wednesday, it has earned $48.2 million.
The fourth episode of the "Die Hard" action series was released by News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox.
"Evan Almighty," the first big disappointment of the summer box office, slipped to No. 3 with $15.1 million and a two-week total of $60.6 million.
With a reported budget of $175 million, the Steve Carell movie was the most expensive comedy ever made. It was released by Universal Pictures, a unit of General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal Inc.
The rodent cartoon "Ratatouille" raced to the top at the North American box office on Sunday but its weekend haul of $47.2 million was the lowest opening for a Pixar-produced release in nine years, according to estimates issued by distributor Walt Disney Co.
Opening weekend predictions among financial analysts for "Ratatouille" had ranged from $50 million to $65 million.
Pixar's previous release, "Cars," opened to $60.1 million a year ago, a figure regarded as something of a disappointment. "Cars" ended up with $244 million domestically.
If "Ratatouille" follows the same pattern, it will finish with about $189 million, becoming the third consecutive Pixar release to underperform its predecessor.
It would also be the lowest total for a Pixar movie since the studio's second effort, "A Bug's Life," which started with $33.3 million in 1998 and finished with $163 million. Pixar has produced eight features, starting with 1995's "Toy Story."
Disney is still proving to investors that last year's acquisition of Pixar is worth its $7.4 billion price tag. "Ratatouille" is the first Pixar film to be released that was still in production when the Disney-Pixar deal was sealed.
The story revolves around a Parisian rat who dreams of making it big as a chef. It was directed by Brad Bird, the man behind Pixar's 2004 film "The Incredibles."
That film holds the record for a Pixar opening with $70.5 million, although it lost steam and ended up with $261 million. Its 2003 predecessor, "Finding Nemo," remains the studio's box office champ with total sales of $340 million, following a $70.3 million start.
Opening at No. 2 at the weekend box office was the Bruce Willis action movie "Live Free Or Die Hard" with $33.2 million. Since opening on Wednesday, it has earned $48.2 million.
The fourth episode of the "Die Hard" action series was released by News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox.
"Evan Almighty," the first big disappointment of the summer box office, slipped to No. 3 with $15.1 million and a two-week total of $60.6 million.
With a reported budget of $175 million, the Steve Carell movie was the most expensive comedy ever made. It was released by Universal Pictures, a unit of General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal Inc.
Darth Elektra
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Looking forward to seeing how well Transformers performs at the boxoffice.
Darth Elektra
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'TRANSFORMERS' TRACKING: All-time biggest opening 7 days for a non-sequel?; $150M+ possible...
http://news.fantasymoguls.com/originalcontent/2007/07/transformers-tr.html
http://news.fantasymoguls.com/originalcontent/2007/07/transformers-tr.html
Darth Elektra
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The Weekend Warrior for the 4th of July!
This Week's Predictions -
1. Transformers - $59.3 million
2. Ratatouille - $31.0 million
3. Live Free or Die Hard – $17.2 million
4. License to Wed – $11.2 million
5. Evan Almighty – $8.1 million
6. 1408 – $6.0 million
7. Knocked Up - $4.9 million
8. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - $4.6 million
9. SiCKO - $3.9 million
10. Ocean's Thirteen - $3.4 million
This Week's Predictions -
1. Transformers - $59.3 million
2. Ratatouille - $31.0 million
3. Live Free or Die Hard – $17.2 million
4. License to Wed – $11.2 million
5. Evan Almighty – $8.1 million
6. 1408 – $6.0 million
7. Knocked Up - $4.9 million
8. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - $4.6 million
9. SiCKO - $3.9 million
10. Ocean's Thirteen - $3.4 million
Darth Elektra
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`Transformers' Grabs $8.8 Million in Tix
Giant robots transformed into big bucks for Hollywood.
The sci-fi adventure "Transformers" took in $8.8 million from Monday night screenings in advance of its official Tuesday release, providing a healthy lead-in for what studios hope will be a strong Fourth of July week at theaters.
"It certainly looks like a great way to start," said Marvin Levy, spokesman for DreamWorks, which released "Transformers" along with fellow Viacom Inc. unit Paramount. "It's a case when you have robots like this, they act like magnets to draw audiences into theaters."
Directed by Michael Bay and based on the Hasbro toys that debuted in the 1980s, "Transformers" chronicles a war between two factions of giant shape-shifting robots that bring their battle to Earth. The human cast costarring alongside the computer-generated robots includes Shia LaBeouf, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, Josh Duhamel and John Turturro.
"Transformers" played in screenings starting at 8 p.m. Monday at 3,050 theaters, about three-fourths the number of cinemas that the movie officially debuted in Tuesday.
Monday's "Transformers" total was the third-best recorded by a movie in similar preview screenings, behind May's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" with $13.2 million and 1996's "Independence Day" with $11.1 million, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.
Preview screenings are becoming more common as studios try to satisfy fan demand and build audience buzz on blockbuster flicks, particularly when many people are taking long weekends because of the Fourth of July.
"It really emanates out of the theaters, who say, `Hey, we're really into a whole week almost of holiday. So why not take advantage of it?'" Levy said.
"Transformers" is positioned to join the ranks of this summer's blockbusters, "At World's End," "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third," all of which have surpassed or are about to cross the $300 million mark domestically.
A brisk Fourth of July week would help Hollywood recover from a monthlong downturn that followed a huge start to summer in May.
"This could be the movie that transforms the summer back into the blockbuster we were hoping it would be," said Paul Dergarabedian, Media By
Giant robots transformed into big bucks for Hollywood.
The sci-fi adventure "Transformers" took in $8.8 million from Monday night screenings in advance of its official Tuesday release, providing a healthy lead-in for what studios hope will be a strong Fourth of July week at theaters.
"It certainly looks like a great way to start," said Marvin Levy, spokesman for DreamWorks, which released "Transformers" along with fellow Viacom Inc. unit Paramount. "It's a case when you have robots like this, they act like magnets to draw audiences into theaters."
Directed by Michael Bay and based on the Hasbro toys that debuted in the 1980s, "Transformers" chronicles a war between two factions of giant shape-shifting robots that bring their battle to Earth. The human cast costarring alongside the computer-generated robots includes Shia LaBeouf, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, Josh Duhamel and John Turturro.
"Transformers" played in screenings starting at 8 p.m. Monday at 3,050 theaters, about three-fourths the number of cinemas that the movie officially debuted in Tuesday.
Monday's "Transformers" total was the third-best recorded by a movie in similar preview screenings, behind May's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" with $13.2 million and 1996's "Independence Day" with $11.1 million, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.
Preview screenings are becoming more common as studios try to satisfy fan demand and build audience buzz on blockbuster flicks, particularly when many people are taking long weekends because of the Fourth of July.
"It really emanates out of the theaters, who say, `Hey, we're really into a whole week almost of holiday. So why not take advantage of it?'" Levy said.
"Transformers" is positioned to join the ranks of this summer's blockbusters, "At World's End," "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third," all of which have surpassed or are about to cross the $300 million mark domestically.
A brisk Fourth of July week would help Hollywood recover from a monthlong downturn that followed a huge start to summer in May.
"This could be the movie that transforms the summer back into the blockbuster we were hoping it would be," said Paul Dergarabedian, Media By
Darth Elektra
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Hollywood's Big Summer Turns Ho-Hum
Tuesday July 3 5:15 PM ET
Summertime in Hollywood is not as hot as it looked at the beginning.
While the three May blockbusters Sony's "Spider-Man 3," DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third" and Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" have combined for nearly $1 billion in domestic revenue, overall business and movie attendance are well below the record pace many show business types had expected.
In fact, attendance is running behind last summer's and has even fallen below that of summer 2005, a year of box-office duds that had some analysts predicting audiences were abandoning movie houses in favor of home theaters and other entertainment options.
With studios offering a stronger late-season lineup than normal this year, attendance likely will pick up and lift Hollywood to a respectable summer. Still, early forecasts that Hollywood would have its first $4 billion summer now look like wishful thinking.
Through last Sunday, the industry had pulled in $1.9 billion since the first weekend in May, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers. About half of that came from the third "Spider-Man," "Shrek" and "Pirates" flicks.
"You can't have a summer's fortunes riding on the backs of three films. I looked at these three films in May and said, `Oh, record summer,' like everyone else did," said Paul Dergarabedian, Media By Numbers president. "Three or four big movies does not make for a record summer. You have to have a solid bullpen or backfield to support the weight of those big blockbusters to build up the overall box office."
Modern Hollywood's best summer for revenues came in 2004, when the industry took in $3.95 billion domestically for the entire season. Based on admission prices, which rise every year, the best summer for actual movie attendance was 2002, with 653 million tickets sold.
The industry is well behind both those records this summer. Through Sunday, 279 million tickets had been sold, compared with 315 million in 2002, according to Media By Numbers. This summer's $1.9 billion in revenue is also shy of the record pace in 2004, when receipts were at $2.04 billion at this point.
While revenues this season are ahead of the $1.8 billion pace during the snoozy summer of 2005, attendance is down 4 million.
The slow summer has not been for lack of hits. Along with the big-three blockbusters, Universal's comedy "Knocked Up," the Warner Bros. casino caper "Ocean's Thirteen" and 20th Century Fox's superhero saga "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" all have topped $100 million.
Disney's animated "Ratatouille" and Fox's action tale "Live Free or Die Hard" both got off to solid starts this past weekend.
And while there have been some underachievers such as Universal's comedy "Evan Almighty," Sony's animated "Surf's Up" and the Warner Bros. mystery "Nancy Drew," Hollywood has yet to deliver an outright bomb this summer.
Part of the shortfall results from overly high expectations for sequels, none of which so far have approached the returns of their franchises' highest-grossing predecessors.
"Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" and "At World's End" all will finish above $300 million but well below the $400 million-plus domestic gross of the best of their earlier installments.
To pessimists, that creates the two-sided perception of a $300 million blockbuster also being something of a disappointment.
"When we start snubbing our noses at $300 million, that's a problem," said Chuck Viane, head of distribution at Disney.
Overseas, big Hollywood franchises are more than making up for lower grosses at home. "Spider-Man 3" is Sony's biggest hit ever with nearly $900 million worldwide. "At World's End" has climbed beyond $900 million globally and will finish as No. 2 on Disney's all-time hit list, behind the $1.05 billion haul of last year's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."
"Shrek the Third" has rolled out more slowly overseas but is edging toward $600 million worldwide, with plenty of life left outside the United States.
Studio cheerleaders say there's also plenty of life left in the summer, starting with Paramount's newly released sci-fi epic "Transformers."
Still to come are the sequels "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "Rush Hour 3," the Adam Sandler comedy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry," the big-screen cartoon "The Simpsons Movie" and the musical "Hairspray."
That leaves Hollywood with at least one big new movie every weekend through mid-August, a time when theater business normally is petering out for the summer.
"I'm not trying to be Pollyannish, but I think the second beginning of summer is right around the corner," said Viane from Disney, which closes out its summer with the live-action and computer-animation adventure "Underdog" in August. "There's so many good movies coming. You've got to let summer run its course. We may just have loaded all the stuff the public wants in the back end."
After the record-breaking debut of "Spider-Man 3," which pulled in $151.1 million in its first three days, a record summer looked inevitable. "Shrek the Third" and "At World's End" followed with $100 million-plus opening weekends.
The industry and audiences nowadays are preoccupied with first weekends, when theaters are packed to the rafters for big releases. But few movies stick around in subsequent weeks the way they once did.
"We're all focused on the biggest opening you can get on these films. If you don't have a $100 million opening, there's a lot of negativity, which shouldn't really be," said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution at Universal.
The studio delivered this summer's exception with "Knocked Up," which opened with a modest $30.7 million weekend but hung on through good audience buzz to reach $122 million and climbing.
With analysts and studio executives expecting a strong finish to summer 2007, the season still could go down as one of modern Hollywood's best.
"I was one of the people who figured on this being a record-breaking summer, no doubt about it," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. "I'm a little surprised, but I do think that it's still going to be. Maybe not in the exact formula we thought. It's still going to be up. Just maybe not as up as most thought."
Tuesday July 3 5:15 PM ET
Summertime in Hollywood is not as hot as it looked at the beginning.
While the three May blockbusters Sony's "Spider-Man 3," DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third" and Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" have combined for nearly $1 billion in domestic revenue, overall business and movie attendance are well below the record pace many show business types had expected.
In fact, attendance is running behind last summer's and has even fallen below that of summer 2005, a year of box-office duds that had some analysts predicting audiences were abandoning movie houses in favor of home theaters and other entertainment options.
With studios offering a stronger late-season lineup than normal this year, attendance likely will pick up and lift Hollywood to a respectable summer. Still, early forecasts that Hollywood would have its first $4 billion summer now look like wishful thinking.
Through last Sunday, the industry had pulled in $1.9 billion since the first weekend in May, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers. About half of that came from the third "Spider-Man," "Shrek" and "Pirates" flicks.
"You can't have a summer's fortunes riding on the backs of three films. I looked at these three films in May and said, `Oh, record summer,' like everyone else did," said Paul Dergarabedian, Media By Numbers president. "Three or four big movies does not make for a record summer. You have to have a solid bullpen or backfield to support the weight of those big blockbusters to build up the overall box office."
Modern Hollywood's best summer for revenues came in 2004, when the industry took in $3.95 billion domestically for the entire season. Based on admission prices, which rise every year, the best summer for actual movie attendance was 2002, with 653 million tickets sold.
The industry is well behind both those records this summer. Through Sunday, 279 million tickets had been sold, compared with 315 million in 2002, according to Media By Numbers. This summer's $1.9 billion in revenue is also shy of the record pace in 2004, when receipts were at $2.04 billion at this point.
While revenues this season are ahead of the $1.8 billion pace during the snoozy summer of 2005, attendance is down 4 million.
The slow summer has not been for lack of hits. Along with the big-three blockbusters, Universal's comedy "Knocked Up," the Warner Bros. casino caper "Ocean's Thirteen" and 20th Century Fox's superhero saga "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" all have topped $100 million.
Disney's animated "Ratatouille" and Fox's action tale "Live Free or Die Hard" both got off to solid starts this past weekend.
And while there have been some underachievers such as Universal's comedy "Evan Almighty," Sony's animated "Surf's Up" and the Warner Bros. mystery "Nancy Drew," Hollywood has yet to deliver an outright bomb this summer.
Part of the shortfall results from overly high expectations for sequels, none of which so far have approached the returns of their franchises' highest-grossing predecessors.
"Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" and "At World's End" all will finish above $300 million but well below the $400 million-plus domestic gross of the best of their earlier installments.
To pessimists, that creates the two-sided perception of a $300 million blockbuster also being something of a disappointment.
"When we start snubbing our noses at $300 million, that's a problem," said Chuck Viane, head of distribution at Disney.
Overseas, big Hollywood franchises are more than making up for lower grosses at home. "Spider-Man 3" is Sony's biggest hit ever with nearly $900 million worldwide. "At World's End" has climbed beyond $900 million globally and will finish as No. 2 on Disney's all-time hit list, behind the $1.05 billion haul of last year's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."
"Shrek the Third" has rolled out more slowly overseas but is edging toward $600 million worldwide, with plenty of life left outside the United States.
Studio cheerleaders say there's also plenty of life left in the summer, starting with Paramount's newly released sci-fi epic "Transformers."
Still to come are the sequels "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "Rush Hour 3," the Adam Sandler comedy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry," the big-screen cartoon "The Simpsons Movie" and the musical "Hairspray."
That leaves Hollywood with at least one big new movie every weekend through mid-August, a time when theater business normally is petering out for the summer.
"I'm not trying to be Pollyannish, but I think the second beginning of summer is right around the corner," said Viane from Disney, which closes out its summer with the live-action and computer-animation adventure "Underdog" in August. "There's so many good movies coming. You've got to let summer run its course. We may just have loaded all the stuff the public wants in the back end."
After the record-breaking debut of "Spider-Man 3," which pulled in $151.1 million in its first three days, a record summer looked inevitable. "Shrek the Third" and "At World's End" followed with $100 million-plus opening weekends.
The industry and audiences nowadays are preoccupied with first weekends, when theaters are packed to the rafters for big releases. But few movies stick around in subsequent weeks the way they once did.
"We're all focused on the biggest opening you can get on these films. If you don't have a $100 million opening, there's a lot of negativity, which shouldn't really be," said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution at Universal.
The studio delivered this summer's exception with "Knocked Up," which opened with a modest $30.7 million weekend but hung on through good audience buzz to reach $122 million and climbing.
With analysts and studio executives expecting a strong finish to summer 2007, the season still could go down as one of modern Hollywood's best.
"I was one of the people who figured on this being a record-breaking summer, no doubt about it," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. "I'm a little surprised, but I do think that it's still going to be. Maybe not in the exact formula we thought. It's still going to be up. Just maybe not as up as most thought."
Galactus
Devourer of Worlds
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With Pirates now over $900 million worldwide I don't think Harry Potter can beat it. The first HP-movie is the only one in that series that made over $900 million. And Prisoner of Azkaban, the only HP-movie released in summer so far, didn't even make it to $800 million. Shrek might still have a chance to beat POTC.
Darth Elektra
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Shrek 3 still has some markets to open up in, but it will be very hard for it to hit the 900 million mark.
At World's End:
Worldwide: $905,354,390
I think it will be pretty hard for Potter to make more because of the stiff competition from Transformers and Ratatouille.
Downhere
Jeremiah 33:3
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Glad to see Ocean's 13 passed 100 million, awesome movie...
Also, Transformers is going to be huge, it already made 8 million last night and today I went to see Ocean's 13 and I've never seen a line as long as I did for Transformers at the theater I usually go to.
Also, Transformers is going to be huge, it already made 8 million last night and today I went to see Ocean's 13 and I've never seen a line as long as I did for Transformers at the theater I usually go to.
Mr. Socko
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There's no way Order of the Phoenix will make as much as AWE worldwide. Potter will reach the 800 Million like always. The first was just an exception.
Sentinel X
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Uggh...Pirates is the number 1 movie again 
...I hate those movies I was hopingg SM3 would win but the quality of SM3 was really low comparing to the first two so Im not surprised that it didnt have stronger legs in the long run
...I hate those movies I was hopingg SM3 would win but the quality of SM3 was really low comparing to the first two so Im not surprised that it didnt have stronger legs in the long runSimilar threads
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