Weekend Box Office Results for December 8-10, 2006 December 11, 2006 7:41 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Box Office, Movies, News.1 comment so far
Here are the final (actual) box office movie results for the past weekend.
(Ranking – Film – Weekend Gross – Total Domestic Gross)
1. “Apocalypto” – $15,005,604 — $15,005,604
2. “Happy Feet” – $12,718,000 — $137,738,000
3. “The Holiday” – $12,778,913 — $12,778,913
4. “Casino Royale” – $8,926,207 — $129,020,082
5. “Blood Diamond” – $8,648,324 — $8,648,324
6. “Deja Vu” – $6,019,672 — $52,995,929
7. “Unaccompanied Minors” – $5,815,474 — $5,815,474
8. “The Nativity Story” – $5,713,854 — $15,907,450
9. “Deck the Halls” – $3,993,188 — $30,144,903
10. “The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause” – $3,254,729 — $77,184,019
Source: Box Office Mojo — ‘Apocalypto’ Impales Top Spot
Golden Globe Nominations to be announced this Thursday [Update] December 11, 2006 7:19 pm
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The nominations for “The 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards” will be announced at the Beverly Hilton on December 14, 2006.
Jessica Biel, Scarlett Johansson and Mathew Perry, will join Hollywood Foreign Press Association President Philip Berk that morning to give the nominations for 25 categories.
The awards ceremony will take place live on NBC at 8:00 PM on Monday, January 15, 2007.
Angelina Jolie may have role in Sin City 2 December 11, 2006 7:07 pm
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ComingSoon.net is reporting that Angelina Jolie may be a part of the second Sin City movie, scheduled for release sometime in 2007.
The folks over at ComingSoon.net caught up with the actress at a press junket and asked her about her possible role in the second Sin City film.
“We talked about it and I read the comic,” Jolie said. “I don’t think the film is being made at this moment. When it’s actually going to be made I’m sure we’ll talk about it.
“It was a funny thing, because the idea came to me when I was pregnant,” she added. “So it was this idea… I’ve been Clover (in ‘The Good Shepherd’), depressed and quiet, and then I was feeling very maternal, pregnant. It was this idea of this sexy, violent and loud [character]… I thought maybe after I’m pregnant it would be nice to do.”
The character Ava in the graphic novel is the former lover of Dwight McCarthy (Clive Owen) who uses her innocence and beautiful looks to manipulate men.
HBO looking to launch Online Video Service December 11, 2006 6:55 pm
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According to HBO’s Eric Kessler, president of sales and marketing for the channel, the network hopes to launch a broadband-video service sometime during the 2007 calendar year.
“We believe we can do with the broadband platform what we did with the on-demand product for our partners,” Kessler said. “Our goal is to create a broadband product with our affiliates that would continue to increase our usage and the value of HBO to our subscribers.”
No other details about the service have been announced, but it is expected to contain the same original series, specials and sports offerings currently available on HBO On Demand (a subscription based VOD channel).
Matt Damon says he’s open to playing Kirk in Trek XI December 11, 2006 2:45 am
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Matt Damon told Sci Fi Wire that he would be open to playing Captain James T. Kirk in the new Star Trek movie tentively titled “Star Trek XI”, but denied the rumors that he was already cast in the role.
“If the script was good, I’d do it,” Damon said in an interview while promoting his latest film, The Good Shepherd. “But, yeah, I heard that [rumor]. I think J.J. Abrams or somebody said that at press junket or something, and it got picked up [by the media and Star Trek fans].”
Many details are still being fleshed out surrounding the next Trek movie, which has a planned release date sometime around 2008/2009.
J.J. Abrams (of Lost and recently Mission: Impossible III fame) is set to co-write and produce “Trek XI”. Abrams is said to be mulling a directing role in the film as well.
AFI Top 10 Film and Television names announced December 11, 2006 12:28 am
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AFI (the American Film Institute) has announced their 7th annual list of the top 10 film and television programs for the past year.
On the television front, NBC Universal was well represented with four series from NBC (“The Office”, “The West Wing”, “Heroes” and “Friday Night Lights”) as well as one series from Sci Fi (a division of NBC Universal) the critical darling “Battlestar Galactica”.
Other television series in the list were HBO’s “Elizabeth I” and “The Wire”, Showtime’s “Dexter”, Comedy Central’s “South Park” and Fox’s “24”.
On the film front, there was a wide mix of drama and comedy led by such movies as “Borat: Cultural Learnings Of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation Of Kazakhstan”, “Happy Feet”, “Babel”, “The Devil Wears Prada” and “United 93”.
Others in the category being honored were “Dreamgirls”, “Half Nelson”, “Inside Man”, “Letters from Iwo Jima” and “Little Miss Sunshine”.
The awards show will be held January 12th at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, where the rational behind each award choice will be disclosed during a ceremony.
Source: [Variety] – AFI names top films of the year
Top DVD sales for the week ending December 3rd December 10, 2006 10:12 pm
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“Superman Returns” took the top spot in weekly dvd sales for the week ending December 3rd, taking the #1 spot away from “Ice Age: The Meltdown” which dropped to #2.
Other movies entering the top 10 charts were “The Ant Bully” at #4, “Clerks II” at #5, “See No Evil” at #7, “Molly: An American Girl” at #9 and “Cheetah Girls 2: Cheetah-Licious Edition” at #10.
Other new additions to the charts were “Superman: Ultimate Collector’s Edition” at #12 and “Robin Hood: Most Wanted Edition” at #13.
Among TV Shows on DVD, the top selling was “Family Guy: Vol. 4” at #15 followed by “Seinfeld: Season 7” at #18 and “Greys Anatomy: Season 2” at #19.
“Apocalypto” wins weekend box office December 10, 2006 9:09 pm
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Taking $14.166M from Friday to Sunday, “Apocalpyto” took the #1 spot ahead of previous openers and the other newcomers this weekend.
Opening in 2,465 theaters, the film averaged a strong $5,746/theater–the most for any wide-release this weekend.
Following in second place was another new opener, “The Holiday” (2,610 theaters-$5,172/theater) with $13.500M.
“Happy Feet” continues to to have good legs, dipping only 27.5% and grossing $12.718M at 3,650 theaters and pushing its domestic total to $137.738M.
Coming in fourth place with $8.800M from 3,161 theaters was “Casino Royale”. Its domestic total now stands at $128.894M ($195.575M from its overseas) for a total worldwide take of $324.469M.
Following then in fifth place for the week was “Blood Diamond” which opened wide to 1,910 theaters. The movie pulled in $8.515M.
The only other new wide release this weekend was “Unaccompanied Minors” which gathered up $6.205M from 2,775 theaters.
“Deja Vu” ($6.070M–$53.046M total), “The Nativity Story” ($5.575M–$15.769M total), “Deck the Halls” ($3.925M–30.076M total) and “The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause” ($3.311M–77.240M total) rounded out the top 10 for the weekend.
Source: [Box Office Mojo]: Weekend Box Office Results for December 8-10, 2006
New “TMNT” and “300” trailers December 9, 2006 5:49 pm
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New trailers for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and “300” have been released.
To view the trailer for “TMNT” go to MTV’s Trailer Park and click the poster for TMNT on the right side.
The trailer for “300”, based on the Frank Miller graphic novel, can be viewed at Yahoo! Movies.
“Apocalypto” takes early Weekend lead as it wins Friday Box Office [UPDATE] December 9, 2006 5:26 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Box Office, Movies, News.1 comment so far
Estimates are a tad less than originally reported for Friday, but “Apocalypto” still took first place.
1. “Apocalypto” – $4.950M
2. “The Holiday” – $4.400M
3. “Happy Feet” – $3.075M
4. “Blood Diamond” – $2.675M
5. “Casino Royale” – $2.635M
“Apocalypto” takes early Weekend lead as it wins Friday Box Office December 9, 2006 12:28 pm
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The Mel Gibson directed Mayan epic “Apocalypto” (2,465 theaters) is expected to take the friday box office with around $6M when Friday estimates are released later in the day.
Its total weekend total should approach somewhere in the $15-16M neighborhood. That would surpase the expectations of Disney, who distributed the film, putting it over the $9.9M “Braveheart” from 1995, which is considered similar to “Apocolypto” in terms of its R-rated content.
Insiders were unsure how the general public would respond to a movie by Gibson which has no spoken english (all in Mayan), subtitled and as well as the scandal involving Gibson from his arrest a while back.
The other main openers for the weekend were “The Holiday”, the romantic comedy starring Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Jack Black and “Blood Diamond”, the action packed thriller starring DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly which revolves around the diamond trade on the African continent.
“The Holiday” (2,610 theaters) took in an estimated $4.5M friday followed by “Blood Diamond” (1,910 theaters). All three new releases are expected to have total 3-day weekends in the teens.
Mel Wins Friday: #1 ‘Apocalypto’ Bigger Opening Wkd Than ‘Braveheart’; Cam’s ‘Holiday’ #2, Leo’s ‘Diamond’ #3 [Deadline Hollywood Daily]
“Dead Man’s Chest” opens big on DVD December 9, 2006 11:00 am
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The blockbuster hit of the summer continued its amazing money earning run selling an estimated 5 million copies of its recently released DVD in its first day alone.
That tally equals the previous high set by “The Goblet of Fire”, but when all is said and done Pirates is expected to sell around 10 million units in its first week and have the best selling DVD of the year.
“Harry Potter” and “Narnia” sold 7M their first week and “Cars” holds the current year record with 9M sold in its first week.
“We could not be more thrilled with the incredible success of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” said Buena Vista president Bob Chapek. “This franchise is a genuine treasure for us, and we are ecstatic that the momentum generated at theatrical has continued with the DVD release. Consumers have an insatiable appetite for all things Pirates of the Caribbean.”
Another “Star Trek” Auction December 9, 2006 2:07 am
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movies, News, Star Trek, Television.1 comment so far
Beginning December 15th, “Star Trek” fans will get the chance to bid on props and costumes from the franchise’s film and tv productions.
The ‘Trek’ items will be auctioned off on itsawraphollywood.com and eBay and will include itmes from all five TV series and all 10 films and some items being auctioned off include costumes from Captain Kirk and Captain Picard, Klingon “Bat-Leth’s and even certain pieces of furniture from the set of “The Next Generation”.
Click here for more details on the auction.
Spielberg and TNT team-up on a new project December 9, 2006 1:59 am
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Having last worked together on the hit 2005 limited mini-series “Into the West”, TNT and Steven Spielberg (through DreamWorks Television) are once again teaming up another limited series, “The Talisman”. The six-hour drama will premiere in the summer of 2008.
“The Talisman” is an adaption of a 1984 book by Stephen King and Peter Straub. In the novel, a boy travels into a parallel universe of good and evil in search of a talisman which can save his mothers life.
Happy Feet takes the Box Office for third straight week December 3, 2006 4:53 pm
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According to early studio estimates, “Happy Feet” took in $17.05M from 3,804 theaters to place ahead of “Casino Royale” for the #1 spot for the third straight week. The pics domestic gross now stands at $121M with an additional $13.70M from its overseas bow thus far for a worldwide take of $134.70M.
“Casino Royale” followed closely in second place with $15.10M from 3,386 theaters. Its total now stands at $115.86M domestically with an additional $128.76 coming from its overseas take for a total worldwide gross so far of $244.62.
The previous Bond film, “Die Another Day”, ended its run with $160.94M domestically ($271.03M – overseas, $431.97M – worldwide).
Following then in third place was “Déjà Vu”, which took in an estimated $11.03M from 3,108 theaters. Its total now stands at $44.09M domestically ($1.10M – overseas, $45.19M – worldwide).
The three new openers of the weekend were led by “The Nativity Story” with a fourth place $8.03M from 3,183 theaters, “Turistas” with an eighth place $3.54M from 1,570 theaters and “National Lampoon’s Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj” which took tenth place with an estimated $2.30M from 1,979 theaters.
Top 10 Box Office from December 1-3, 2006
1. Happy Feet – $17,045,000
2. Casino Royale – $15,100,000
3. Déjà Vu – $11,032,000
4. The Nativity Story – $8,025,000
5. Deck the Halls – $6,650,000
6. The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause – $5,006,000
7. Borat – $4,825,000
8. Turistas – $3,540,000
9. Stranger Than Fiction – $3,400,000
10. National Lampoon’s Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj – $2,295,000
Weekend Box Office Results for December 1-3, 2006 [Box Office Mojo]
Sci Fi and RHI Entertainment announce “Wizard of Oz” spinoff mini-series titled “Tin Man” December 3, 2006 1:01 am
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Sci Fi has teamed with RHI Entertainment to create a six-hour mini-series based on “The Wizard of Oz” tentively titled “Tin Man” set for a December 2007 premiere.
A sometimes psychedelic, often twisted and always bizarre take on ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ SCI FI’s ‘Tin Man’ is the epic tale of DG, a young woman plucked from her humdrum life and thrust into The Outer Zone (the O.Z.) – a fantastical realm rife with wonder, but oppressed by dark magic. In the adventure of a lifetime, DG discovers her true identity, battles evil winged-monkey-bats, and attempts to fulfill her destiny. Her perilous journey begins on the fabled Old Road that leads to a wizard known as the Mystic Man. Along the way, she is joined by a decidedly strange trio of companions – “Glitch,” an odd man missing half his brain; “Raw,” a quietly powerful wolverine-like creature longing for inner courage, and “Cain,” a heroic former policeman (who are known in the O.Z. as “Tin Men”) seeking vengeance for his scarred heart. Ultimately, DG’s destiny leads her to an emotional and terrifying showdown with the scintillatingly wicked sorceress Azkadellia, whose ties to DG are closer than anyone could have imagined. DG’s life, as well as the very future of the O.Z., hang in the balance.
Casting is underway for the mini which will be written by Steven Long Mitchell and Craig Van Sickle (creators of “The Pretender”).
The mini will go into production in Vancouver sometime in early 2007.
Eddie Murphy to star in new “Beverly Hills Cop” December 1, 2006 4:57 am
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According to Variety, Paramount will be bringing back Eddie Murphy in “Beverly Hills Cop IV” to reprise the role of Axel Foley. Lorenzo di Bonaventura will serve as producer of the film.
The first “Beverly Hills Cop” movie was released in 1984 and went on to become a major success, grossing more than $234.76M domestically and $81.60M overseas.
There were two other installments, with the second doing equally strong business ($153.66M domestically, plus $146.30M overseas) three years later, before the franchise fizzled out with the third installment in 1994, which failed to crack the $45M mark domestically.
“Axel Foley is one of the great action-comedy characters, a character that Eddie loves. I’m lucky enough to help bring it back,” di Bonaventura said. “This genre is missing from the landscape.”
Jerry Bruckheimer, who was part of the first two films, will not be involved with the fourth installment.
Starship Troopers 3 close to greenlight December 1, 2006 4:46 am
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According to moviehole.net, it appears that Sony is close to greenlighting a third film in the Starship Tropers franchise.
“Looks like – fingers crossed – Sony is moving forward”, Neumeier, who will write & direct the film, tells Moviehole. “Plans are afoot to shoot next year. Casper Van Dien will be back as Colonel John Rico. There’ll be a new bug or two. Also draft riots. Religion makes a comeback. And the Federation has a new weapon.”
Starship Troopers began its run back in 1997 as a mild SF hit movie, which was directed by Paul Verhoeven. Neumeier, who is involved with the third film, wrote the screenplay for that film.
Neumeier was also involved with the second film, serving as the writer and co-producer of “Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation, which was released as a straight-to-video production.
If Troopers 3 is indeed greenlit, it’s expected to be released direct-to-DVD.
Medieval France film in the works from Scorcese December 1, 2006 4:32 am
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Martin Scorcese will develop (with hopes to direct) an adaption of Eric Jager’s “The Last Duel: A True Story of Crime, Scandal and Trial by Combat in Medieval France”. The movie will carry the title of “Duel”.
The film is part of Scorcese’s new four-year deal at Paramount which will see him direct and produce features (including direct-to-DVD), television and even digital content.
“The Last Duel” was written in 2004 and tells the story of a duel sanctioned by the French government between two knights in 1386 France.
Columbia Pictures to take “Cleopatra” back to the big screen December 1, 2006 4:24 am
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Columbia Pictures has acquired the screen rights to “Cleopatra” with hopes of debutinthe movie sometime in 2009.
The film will be written by pullitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff with Scott Rudin set to produce.
Friday Box Office Estimates, “Casino Royale” comes out on top November 18, 2006 2:27 pm
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In its first day of release, “Casino Royale”, the latest movie in the Bond franchise, grossed an estimated $14.75M, ahead of the other wide-opening movie this weekend “Happy Feet” which grossed an estimated $11.75M.
It is slightly behind the $16.62M which was grossed by “Die Another Day” in its first day of release back in 2002, but inline with studio estimates and predictions.
2008 Movie Premieres Slowly Being Set November 17, 2006 4:07 am
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A few dates have been set for a couple big time movies set for release in 2008:
Columbia Pictures
- The Will Smith led superhero action/drama “Tonight, He Comes”
- July 2, 2008
- “Step Brothers” reuniting “Talladega Nights” stars Will Ferrell and John C. Reill
- July 25, 2008
- The Da Vinci Code follow-up “Angels & Demons” (an adaption of Don Brown’s novel of the same name)
- December 12, 2008
Warner Bros.
- The Wachowski brothers’ “Speed Racer” adaption
- May 23, 2008
- The Batman Begins sequel titled “The Dark Knight”
- July 18, 2008
Casino Royale Sets New UK Record for Bond Films November 17, 2006 3:58 am
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“Casino Royale”, the new Bond movie starring Daniel Craig in the main role, sold 1.7 million pounds ($3.2 million) worth of tickets in its first day of release on Thursday. Compared to the most recent Bond movie, the 2002 “Die Another Day”, that was an increase of 54% when comparing sales.
It made up more than 66% of all movie tickets sold across Britain.
MGM Talks “The Hobbit” November 16, 2006 9:56 pm
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Chief executive of MGM, Harry Sloan talked briefly at the European Media Leaders Summit in London about the planned “Hobbit” movie.
Sloan said that there will be two films, with the first being a direct adaption of The Hobbit and the second a new film which would draw from “footnotes and source material connecting The Hobbit with The Lord of the Rings“.
Sloan also went on to confirm that MGM is in advanced talks with Peter Jackson to direct both movies, but it was emphasised by MGM that the negotiations are still in progress and there likely wont’ be any sort of production till at least 2008 or possibly even 2009.
New “Bablylon 5” Direct-to-Video Movie in 2007 November 14, 2006 4:14 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Babylon 5, DVD, Movies, News, Sci Fi, Television, TV DVD.2 comments
Warner Home Video and Warner Bros. Television have announced that production has begun on “Babylon 5: The Lost Tales”, a made-for-video movie targeted at fans of the Babylon 5 franchise set for release in 2007.
The DVD movie will include two new stories entitled ‘Voices of the Dark’, with both stories written, directed and executive produced by original Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski. The story of “The Lost Tales” picks up several years after the original series.
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