Taylor Lautner To 'Stretch' Into Latest Role

Taylor Lautner has been cast in the title role of "Stretch Armstrong," Universal Pictures confirmed to Access Hollywood.
"The Twilight Saga" star will take on the role of the rubbery hero based on the Hasbro toy. The 3-D film will be released in 2012.

"In the past two years, Taylor has emerged as a real star at the global box office. He brings the perfect balance of energy and athleticism to the role of an unlikely super hero with a fantastic super power," Universal Pictures co-chairman Donna Langley said in a statement to Access. "We couldn't be more pleased that he has agreed to be our Stretch."
But the busy young actor won't have to stretch his schedule too much to take on the role.


The film's 2012 release is geared toward allowing him time to work on his previously announced projects - the title role in "Max Steel" as well as the films "Northern Lights" and "Cancun," a film centered on his martial-arts skills. A final film - or potentially two films - based on "Breaking Dawn," the fourth book in "The Twilight Saga," has yet to be made official.
In related news, another Hasbro property-turned-Universal film, director Peter Berg's "Battleship," has moved its release date to May 25, 2012 - Memorial Day weekend.
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'Avatar' Officially Overtakes 'Titanic' For Global Box Office Record

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- It's official - "Avatar" is the new king of the world... or at least, the worldwide box office.
On Monday, the James Cameron-directed film passed Cameron's own "Titanic" as the highest grossing film of all-time, taking in $1.859 billion globally - after only 37 days in theaters.

"Titanic," released in 1997, held the previous record with $1.843 billion.

"We are deeply gratified that so many millions of people around the globe have embraced 'Avatar,'" Twentieth Century Fox - the studio behind the project -- said in a statement on Tuesday. "Its success results from the efforts of literally thousands of people, who, over the course of several years, worked to bring James Cameron's vision of Pandora to life. The themes of protecting the environment, respecting life, and yearning for a peaceful planet have united moviegoers worldwide. We're very proud of, and grateful to, James Cameron, his amazing and dedicated team, and all the many people at Fox, who worked so long and so hard to achieve this milestone."


"Avatar," which won the Golden Globe for Best Picture, Drama earlier this month, has been number one at the box office for six straight weeks since its release on December 18, 2009.
It also received a Best Picture nomination at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and is expected to do the same when Oscar nominations are annouced on February 2.
Fans of the film have flocked to theaters since "Avatar's" release, especially the 3-D showings, which have brought in $1.35 billion of the film's total gross.


"I never thought I would live to see the day when 'Titanic's' record would fall, but not even 12 years later, here we are talking about it - and thanks to James Cameron, again," Access Hollywood's Scott "Movie" Mantz said.
However, Mantz did offer one caveat for "Avatar's" stunning success.
"To be fair, you've got to look at the ticket prices - these prices are so much more than they were for 'Titanic,' especially for the 3-D movies - and especially for a 3d movie in IMAX," he added. "And it's not like 'Up In The Air' or 'Spider-Man 3' made this much with a regular ticket pirce, so when all the dust settles, it's only fair to have that in the back of your mind."

And as for where "Avatar" will end up when its box office run comes to an end?
"It's going to gross at least $2.2 billion by the time it's over," Mantz predicted.


SOURCE

Sherlock Holmes sets Christmas day record

Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes took advantage of Christmas’ falling on a Friday this year to set a single-day record for the holiday with a $24.9 million domestic haul.

"Sherlock Holmes" beats out "Avatar" at box office

British director Guy Ritchie's "Sherlock Holmes" set a Christmas Day sales record at the box office in North America, taking a narrow lead over last weekend's champ, "Avatar," according to early estimates released on Saturday.

How Much Did Avatar Really Cost?

In Hollywood, the saying goes, the really creative folks are the accountants. Certainly the number-crunchers at 20th Century Fox, the studio distributing James Cameron’s costly and complex epic Avatar, will be kept busy over the coming months as box office grosses pour in and profit participators line up for their share. As ticket sales are tallied, and investors are repaid, the question will be, Was Avatar worth it?

James Cameron: China should let more movies in

Hollywood director James Cameron urged China to open its doors to more foreign films, arguing it would boost the local cinema industry after the WTO ruled Beijing was illegally restricting movie and other media imports.

Avatar races to top of UK film chart

The film reportedly cost up to $400m (£248.2m) to make and market

James Cameron's sci-fi epic Avatar has topped the UK and Ireland box office in its first weekend of release.

The film, set in the 22nd Century on a distant planet, took £8.5m, blowing away nearest rival St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold with £1.6m.
It is the third biggest opening of 2009 in the UK behind Twilight: New Moon at £11.7m and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince at £19.8m.
Avatar reportedly cost up to $400m (£248.2m) to make and market.
Last week's number one film, Disney's adaptation of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol, fell to three after seven weeks on the chart.

UK & IRELAND BOX OFFICE 1. Avatar - £8.5m 2. St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold - £1.6m 3. Disney's A Christmas Carol - £1m 4. Nativity! - £578,510 5. Planet 51 - £451,420 Source: Screen International

British comedy Nativity! starring Martin Freeman and Ashley Jensen rose two spots to four.
Family animation Planet 51 - the story of an alien race living the life of 1950s America - fell to five while Where the Wild Things Are slipped four places to six.
Meanwhile musical film Nine, featuring an all-star cast including Dame Judi Dench, Daniel Day Lewis and Nicole Kidman, made an appearance at number 13 after showing at just one venue in the UK, taking £44,443 in ticket sales.

check the link below:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8426879.stm

Avatar pulls in $9.5 million on IMAX screens

IMAX Corp. said Monday the film "Avatar" made $9.5 million in ticket sales during its opening weekend in 178 of its theaters in the U.S.

"Avatar," a science fiction thriller directed by James Cameron and released by News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox, took in roughly 13 percent of the total sales in IMAX theaters, the company said. Total domestic sales came to $73 million.

The movie made another $4.1 million internationally on 58 screens, IMAX said.

IMAX plans to release the film in 25 more locations in the next few weeks, including theaters in China and Japan.

IMAX shares rose 36 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $12.90 in premarket trading.

Link HERE

FX makes date for "2012"

FX has snapped up TV rights to "2012," the disaster movie that just enjoyed a blockbuster $225 million opening weekend worldwide.

Appropriately, the Roland Emmerich-directed Sony movie will premiere on the basic cable network in the beginning of 2012.

In addition to "2012," FX has acquired another Sony film that opened at No. 1 this fall, the horror-comedy "Zombieland," which will be available at the end of next year.

The license fee for both movies is said to be standard, about 12% of their domestic box office.

If "2012" crosses the $200 million mark in North America, as expected after its big $65 million opening weekend, it could fetch as much as $24 million. For the Woody Harrelson starrer "Zombieland," which grossed $73 million domestically, the price tag is estimated to be $8 million-$9 million.

Hit movies, especially big, special effects-heavy disaster flicks, have done well on FX, including the Emmerich-directed disaster duo "The Day After Tomorrow" and "Independence Day."

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE5AF0YV20091116

'2012' has worldwide box-office bang of $225M

Doom spelled dollars at the box office as the global-disaster tale "2012" opened at No. 1 domestically with $65 million and pulled in $225 million worldwide.

The Sony Pictures action saga tells the story of a scramble to save remnants of humanity aboard giant arks as the earth's crust shifts and flood waters pour over most of the planet. With a cast led by John Cusack, Danny Glover and Chiwetel Ejiofor, "2012" was directed by doomsday specialist Roland Emmerich ("Independence Day," "The Day After Tomorrow").

Overseas, "2012" did $17.2 million in France, $15.3 million in Russia, $9.9 million in South Korea and $8.1 million in Spain.

Domestically, "2012" came in just shy of the $68.7 million opening weekend for "The Day After Tomorrow." But Sony reported that its global total was the best ever for an original movie not based on an established franchise, brand or best-selling novel.

"Roland is that type of filmmaker that casts his net really wide," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony. "The story is something people could really relate to. It's a story of the survival of humanity."

"Disney's A Christmas Carol" slipped to No. 2 with $22.3 million, down only 26 percent from its No. 1 opening gross a weekend earlier. The Jim Carrey holiday adventure raised its 10-day total to $63.3 million.

Big films typically can drop 50 percent or more in the second weekend, but the strong hold for "A Christmas Carol" indicates it could have a long shelf life through the holidays.

Lionsgate's acclaimed drama "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire" broke into the top-10 as it expanded to more theaters after a huge debut in limited release the previous weekend.

Finishing at No. 4, "Precious" took in $6.1 million in 174 theaters, averaging $35,000 a cinema and raising its 10-day total to $8.9 million. That compared to a $19,095 average in 3,404 theaters for "2012."

With a cast that includes Mo'Nique, Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz, "Precious" stars newcomer Gabourey Sidibe as a Harlem teen pulling herself out of an abyss of illiteracy, incest and domestic abuse.

"Michael Jackson's "This Is It" added $5.1 million domestically to raise its total to $67.2 million. The Sony release became the all-time top-grossing music documentary, passing the $65.3 million total of last year's "Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert."

The weekend's other new wide release, Focus Features' rock 'n' roll comedy "Pirate Radio," opened a weak No. 11 with $2.9 million in 882 theaters, averaging $3,253 a cinema.

The ensemble cast of "Pirate Radio" features Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy and Kenneth Branagh in a story about 1960s disc jockeys blasting illicit rock music into stodgy Britain from an offshore radio station aboard a tanker.

Starting in limited release, Fox Searchlight's animated comedy "Fantastic Mr. Fox" drew big audiences with $260,000 in four theaters, for a whopping average of $65,000 a cinema. The film expands to nationwide release the day before Thanksgiving.

George Clooney, Meryl Streep and Bill Murray lead the voice cast of "Fantastic Mr. Fox," adapted by director Wes Anderson from the Roald Dahl children's book about a poultry-thieving fox and three evil farmers.

Paramount's micro-budgeted horror flick "Paranormal Activity" pulled in $4.2 million to cross the $100 million mark. Shot for just $15,000, the supernatural tale rode a surge of online buzz to become a horror sensation, with a domestic gross now standing at $103.8 million.

Despite the big opening for "2012," Hollywood business dipped. Overall revenues came in at $140 million, down 6 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when the James Bond adventure "Quantum of Solace" led with $67.5 million.

Still, "2012" was a strong prelude as Hollywood gears up for Thanksgiving, one of the busiest weekends at movie theaters.

"It feels totally like summer," said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. "This proves that if you put a summer movie anywhere in the release schedule, you can sometimes get summer numbers."

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "2012," $65 million.

2. "Disney's A Christmas Carol," $22.3 million.

3. "The Men Who Stare at Goats," $6.2 million.

4. "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire," $6.1 million.

5. "Michael Jackson's This Is It," $5.1 million.

6. "The Fourth Kind," $4.7 million.

7. "Couples Retreat," $4.3 million.

8. "Paranormal Activity," $4.2 million.

9. "Law Abiding Citizen," $3.9 million.

10. "The Box," $3.2 million.

On the Net:

• http://www.hollywood.com/boxoffice

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ia1FPSxXY_CtWNU2djwNxRbGiU3wD9C06FR80

'Museum' comedy beats 'Terminator' at box office

Ben Stiller beat Christian Bale in the North American weekend box office duel between their respective "Night at the Museum" and "Terminator" sequels, according to studio estimates issued on Sunday.

Reigning champ Tom Hanks fell to No. 4 with "Angels & Demons," although the Vatican thriller remained the top choice internationally.

"Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" sold $53.5 million worth of tickets across the United States and Canada during the three days beginning Friday, said 20th Century Fox, a unit of News Corp (NWSA.O).

The comedy far exceeded the $30.4 million debut of its 2006 predecessor, "Night at the Museum," and also set a new live-action record for Stiller, one of Hollywood's most reliable box office performers.

Stiller, 43, reprises his role as a night security guard, this time at the center of a battle involving historical figures at the massive Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. The cast includes Robin Williams as former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt and Amy Adams as aviatrix Amelia Earhart. The film cost about $125 million to make, Fox said.

It also enjoyed a strong foreign debut, earning $50.5 million from 93 markets, bested only by the $60.4 million haul for "Angels & Demons" from a similar number of territories.

"Terminator Salvation," meanwhile, earned $43.0 million in North America. The film failed to beat the $44 million start for the previous entry in the cyborg series, 2003's "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," the swan song of franchise star Arnold Schwarzenegger.

But the race between the two new sequels was closer than it appeared because Warner Bros. got a head start on the U.S. Memorial Day holiday weekend by opening "Terminator" on Thursday, when it earned about $13.4 million. Much of those ticket sales would have been pushed over to the weekend if it had opened on Friday. Its four-day total was $56.4 million.

"TERMINATOR" BATTLES "TREK," HOOPS

The studios generally try to avoid each other when they roll out their big movies. In this case, "Night at the Museum" played to a broad audience, while "Terminator" was more targeted at male moviegoers.

Time Warner Inc (TWX.N)-owned Warner Bros. said "Terminator" was likely more affected by competition from the similarly-skewing "Star Trek," which slipped one place to No. 3 in its third weekend with $22 million. The National Basketball Association playoffs also appeared to siphon off older men in cities such as Los Angeles.

Warner Bros. paid $50 million for domestic distribution rights. The post-acpocalyptic film, in which "Batman" star Bale takes on the freedom-fighter role of John Connor, cost about $180 million to make, the studio said.

"Angels & Demons," sequel to 2006 film "The Da Vinci Code," earned $21.4 million, taking the 10-day total for the Columbia Pictures release to $81.5 million. By contrast, "The Da Vinci Code" had earned $136.5 million after the same period.

But the Sony Corp (6758.T) (SNE.N) unit has said it never expected the second film to be as big. As was the case with "The Da Vinci Code," the film is a much bigger international draw. Its overseas total now stands at $198.3 million.

Paramount Pictures' youth-oriented reboot of the "Star Trek" sci-fi franchise has earned $183.5 million after three weekends.

The Viacom Inc (VIAb.N) unit also claimed the No. 5 spot with "Dance Flick," a comedy spoof from the Wayans family. It earned a modest $11 million.

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssConsumerGoodsAndRetailNews/idUSN2442066820090524

New "Terminator" no fun without Schwarzenegger

The latest chapter in the successful cyborg series following 2003's "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" -- and the first sans Schwarzenegger -- "Terminator Salvation" doesn't skimp on all that crunching heavy metal.

But while incoming director McG (the "Charlie's Angels" movies) certainly gets a rise out of the machinery in the post-apocalyptic thriller, there's little sign of life where the flatly executed human component is concerned.

The terminally sullen results are unlikely to hurt the picture's opening holiday weekend, given the presence of last summer's box office king, Christian Bale. But its total domestic take will fall a lot closer in line with "Terminator 3's" $150.3 million than those gargantuan "Dark Knight" numbers reaped by Warner Bros. (Columbia is handling the film in most international territories.)

Taking place in 2018, or 14 years after the dreaded Judgment Day has occurred, "Salvation" finds armies of Skynet Terminators patrolling the bombed-out remains of the country, searching for the odd pockets of human survivors who managed to survive the blasts.

Among the living, of course, is John Connor (Bale), who despite his uncertainties seems well on his way to becoming the official leader of the Resistance.

He's far less certain about the intentions of Marcus Wright (Australian Sam Worthington), a former death-row inmate-turned-organ donor who appears willing to help him track down a teenager named Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin), who of course is supposed to grow up to become John's father.

Nevertheless, the two form an uneasy alliance.

Although McG manages to keep the machinery humming 18 years after James Cameron's "Judgment Day" and its liquid metal raised the F/X stakes considerably, anchoring it in any sort of satisfying dramatic context is another story.

And the one provided by "Rise of the Machine" scripters John Brancato & Michael Ferris (curiously there's no mention of original character creators Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd) fails to give Bale and Worthington much opportunity to stand out from all the monochromatic rubble.

In Arnold's absence, an important ingredient of the "Terminator" iconography -- namely, the fun factor -- is in short supply. Apparently sensing the deficiency, the filmmakers have found a couple of ways to pay homage, both in terms of line callbacks and through the magic of special effects.

But at the end of the day, despite the still-potent landscape provided by cinematographer Shane Hurlbut, production designer Martin Laing and visual effects supervisor Charles Gibson -- the film is dedicated to the late Stan Winston, who designed the first T-800 -- and that rumbling, propulsive Danny Elfman score, an inescapable truth remains: It's just not the same without the Governator.

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE54H0AG20090518

'Star Trek' breaks Imax record as purists grumble

Imax Corp (IMX.TO) said on Tuesday its "Star Trek" screenings grossed a record $8.5 million during the film's first weekend, even as some purists complained that the company's big screens were not big enough.

The hotly anticipated science fiction movie garnered $79.2 million at U.S. and Canadian box offices over the weekend, and 11 percent of that figure came from Imax screens.

Imax said that was significant because its screens accounted for less than 2 percent of the venues for "Star Trek." The old record of $6.3 million was set by "The Dark Knight" last summer, although that film played on 94 Imax screens, while "Star Trek" beamed in on 138.

The "Star Trek" Imax contribution shows that moviegoers are pleased with the company's theater experience, Chief Executive Richard Gelfond told Reuters.

"There's no indication at all that the word of mouth is anything but positive," he said.

But on Tuesday, the company also faced some criticism from a Hollywood actor who wrote in an expletive-laden blog that he felt cheated when he paid $5 extra to see "Star Trek" in Imax and saw the movie on a smaller-than-expected screen.

"These new 'Imax' theaters are really just nice digital screens with good sound, but they are not Imax, in that they don't have the huge 72-foot (22-metre) gigantic screen which people would expect," said Aziz Ansari, a co-star of the new NBC show "Parks and Recreation."

The actor's comments echoed earlier criticism from purists who say Imax should re-brand its smaller screens in multiplexes to differentiate them from larger Imax screens, found mostly in museums and science centers.

Sizes vary, but a typical Imax multiplex screen could be 28 by 58 feet (8.5 metres by 18 metres) , while a larger Imax screen could be 76 by 97 feet (23 metres by 29.5 metres).

Gelfond countered that Imax has no re-branding plans because "Imax is Imax."

"Does American Airlines brand a (Boeing) 767 (flight) differently than a 727? We wouldn't put our name on it unless it lived up to the 'Wow!' factor and to the Imax brand," he said.

The company has been moving its smaller version of Imax screens into multiplexes for more than five years, and it has 371 screens worldwide, with 250 of those in commercial venues as opposed to museums and science centers, the company said.

Imax screens in multiplexes are always the largest in that venue, and with digital remastering they offer higher picture quality and other enhanced features. "When you go to an Imax theater you get the most immersive film experience on the planet," Gelfond said.

"Star Trek" was released by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc .

http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssTechMediaTelecomNews/idUKN1234952220090513

'Star Trek' has galactic $72.5 million box office opening

"Star Trek" went where no Trekkie film has gone before, earning $72.5 million in its first weekend in theaters.

The new "Trek" easily topped the previous record opening weekend in the 11-movie series, which was $30.7 million for 1996's "Star Trek: First Contact."

The blockbuster debut is highly logical, as Mr. Spock might say, considering all the hype, buzz and overwhelmingly strong reviews the reboot of the 1960s television series has garnered.

The film, which explores the back stories of Spock, Capt. Kirk and the rest of the Enterprise crew, was also one of the most favorably reviewed movies of the year.

The fact that box-office sales grew over the weekend from $26.8 million on Friday to $27.4 million on Saturday also shows the movie "is going to have legs, a rare commodity in a world where every week there's a new blockbuster," said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com.

Last week's top film, "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," came in at No. 2 with $27 million.

The prequel to the "X-Men" franchise, starring Hugh Jackman as the mutant who slices and dices his enemies with his metal claws, has made nearly $129.6 million in two weeks.

"We think we withstood the attack of 'Star Trek,' if you will, and will settle into a long, successful run," said Chris Aronson of 20th Century Fox.

Other strong holdovers included "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past," which was No. 3 with $10.5 million.

"Obsessed" came in No. 4 with $6.6 million, and "17 Again" earned $4.4 million to land in fifth place.

The week's other new wide release, the stoner comedy "Next Day Air," came in at No. 6 with $4 million.

Rounding out the top 10 box-office winners were "The Soloist," which earned seventh place with $3.6 million, and the animated comedy "Monsters vs. Aliens," which scared up $3.4 million in ticket sales for eighth place.

"Earth" was No. 9 with $2.5 million, and "Hannah Montana: The Movie," came in at No. 10 with box-office sales reaching $2.4 million.

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/2009/05/10/2009-05-10_star_trek_has_galactic_725_million_box_office_opening.html#ixzz0F9ROIxL6&A

Hugh Jackman to launch `Wolverine' in Mexico

Hugh Jackman has been cleared to visit Mexico.

Film distributor 20th Century Fox says the actor will help launch "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" in Mexico City on May 26. Last week, Jackman's scheduled appearance there was canceled due to swine flu concerns.

The Mexico premiere will be held at the National Auditorium. According to Jackman's Twitter page, the "Wolverine" star intends "to provide a moment of fun escapism and a treat for some of the loyal fans of the comic."

Movie theaters across Mexico reopened Thursday after a five-day shutdown of businesses, schools and other venues. Mexico announced its 45th death and 159 more cases Friday.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FILM_WOLVERINE_MEXICO?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2009-05-09-15-41-56

`Star Trek' boldly goes to $31M at box office

"Star Trek" has gone to warp speed at the box office with $31 million in domestic ticket sales after just over a day in theaters.

Distributor Paramount said "Star Trek" took in $24 million Friday, plus $7 million during preview screenings Thursday night.

Paramount estimates that by the end of the weekend the movie will be near or over $70 million in ticket sales.

That puts the movie light years ahead of the previous 10 "Trek" movies.

The best opening weekend ever for the franchise was $30.7 million for 1996's "Star Trek: First Contact." According to inflation-adjusted numbers compiled by Hollywood.com, that translates to $51.2 million in today's dollars.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_BOX_OFFICE_STAR_TREK?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2009-05-09-15-34-31

Studio ups download figure for pirated "Wolverine"

An unfinished pirated version of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" that hit the Internet March 30, well before the film's No. 1 debut in theaters, has been downloaded some 4 million times, News Corp's. 20th Century Fox said Wednesday.

Whether such online attention hurt "Wolverine" at the box office is debatable, but Fox's assertion of 4 million is about four times greater than previous estimates.

At last year's average ticket price of $7.18, the piracy could conceivably -- though not likely -- have cost Fox $28.7 million.

"Piracy is a serious issue for us. We now estimate that there are above 4 million downloads of that stolen 'Wolverine' movie that was up there," News Corp. COO Peter Chernin told Wall Street analysts on Wednesday.

Chernin and chairman/CEO Rupert Murdoch were speaking on a conference call. A News Corp. spokeswoman later confirmed that the statistic was 4 million and not 1 million, the smaller number having been conventional wisdom for several days.

Chernin said on the call that many Internet sites illegally trading "Wolverine" have been shut down.

Piracy of intellectual property including movies, said Chernin, is "as big an act of industrial espionage, industrial sabotage, as we have seen in terms of its economic impact."

Nevertheless, "Wolverine" scored a better opening weekend than any other movie this year.

Said Murdoch on the call Wednesday: "At Fox, we couldn't be happier with last weekend's $85 million opening of 'Wolverine.'"

http://uk.reuters.com/article/televisionNews/idUKTRE54614N20090507

"Star Trek" aims to stun fans

When director J.J. Abrams dreamed up the new "Star Trek" movie, he took the prologue to the original television series to mind, and at least one key person approves -- Mr. Logical himself, Spock.

For new "Trekkies" -- and there will likely be many when the movie debuts in U.S. theaters on Friday -- the 1960s TV show started with a prologue about the voyages of the starship Enterprise and its crew that would "boldly go where no (one) has gone before" in the "final frontier" of space.

To reignite the franchise that spawned five TV series and 10 movies over roughly 40 years, Abrams has done exactly that -- gone where no other "Star Trek" storyteller had gone before -- with a tale of how Captain James T. Kirk, Dr. "Bones" McCoy and the Vulcan Mr. Spock came to be shipmates.

But changing the "canon" -- events and characters that shape "Star Trek" lore -- could leave legions of old "Trekkies" thinking Abrams had done something "highly illogical," as Spock might have once said. Old Spock Leonard Nimoy begs to differ.

"Canon is only important to certain people because they have to cling to their knowledge of the minutiae," Nimoy told Reuters. "Open your mind! Be a 'Star Trek' fan and open your mind and say, 'Where does Star Trek want to take me now'."

Where will audiences be taken? Backward is the way ahead.

They will learn confident Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) was a brawling bad boy from Iowa who joins the Star Fleet Academy, and beats the impossible "no win" simulator test that was dreamed up by the young and "logical" Spock (Zachary Quinto).

Together with crew mates McCoy, Nyota Uhura, Hikaru Sulu, Pavel Chekov and engineer Scotty, they board the Enterprise as young men and women on their first adventure in space.

The film, produced by Viacom Inc's Paramount pictures, moves at warp speed as the crew engages the villain Nero (Eric Bana) who has an eye for evil.

'GREAT JOB,' SAYS SPOCK

Nimoy, 78, is the only actor from the original TV series and "Star Trek" movies to also claim a role in the new film, playing Spock Prime, who helps set in motion the new future.

He heaped praise on the 31-year-old Quinto for taking Spock in a new direction as he first despises Kirk then grows to have a grudging respect for the man that will become his captain.

"I couldn't have improved on what he did," Nimoy said. "He did a great job, a great job, and I admire his choices."

After more than 40 years, Nimoy seems to have reached a comfort level with the character from whom he once wanted to distance himself. Nimoy even wrote one book called "I Am Not Spock", but later followed it with, "I Am Spock".

Nimoy was "ready to play the wise old character that hands down some help and philosophy to the young people", he said. "Settled, resolved, comfortable ... The Spock I played in this movie is pretty much me. Pretty much where I am in my life."

Whether fans settle for the new "Star Trek" awaits Friday's debut, but among comments at www.trekspace.org was this from Ben J Grimm: "I simply REFUSE to support ParaMOUND in their DEGRADATION of my beloved STAR TREK."

So "Grimm" may be disappointed in early reviews because "Star Trek" is winning raves. At review aggregator rottentomatoes.com, the movie rates a 100 percent positive.

The Hollywood Reporter says "all the familiar characters are instantly identifiable, the film gives Paramount Pictures a new lease of life on its franchise."

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE5443BU20090505

Faster-paced "Da Vinci Code" sequel premieres in Rome

The movie sequel to "The Da Vinci Code" is being greeted as a faster-paced, more gripping film than the original and is respectful to Catholics, director Ron Howard said at its Rome premiere on Monday.

"Angels & Demons," a film adaptation of the novel by Dan Brown, sees symbologist Robert Langdon return to the big screen to try to help the Vatican rescue kidnapped cardinals who are being killed on the hour.

He also must stop a ticking time bomb by tracking down clues linked to a centuries-old secret society called the Illuminati.

"Everyone is telling me that they find this movie to be more entertaining, more exciting, more engrossing," Howard told Reuters on the red carpet.

Brown told a news conference ahead of the premiere that his novel "Angels & Demons" was an easier fit to cinema "and this difference really shows through in this movie."

Howard's adaptation of "The Da Vinci Code" was a commercial success, earning $750 million, but it was panned by critics and offended some Catholics. Trade publication Variety called it "stodgy" and "grim."

Tom Hanks told Reuters the pace of the new movie was "bang, bang. There's no time for anything."

"It really gallops at quite a pace," he said.

He joked that also meant no love scenes with the movie's leading woman, a physicist played by actress Ayelet Zurer, who accompanies Langdon on his search through Rome and the Vatican.

"We really don't have time to make out or go to bed when cardinals are being killed on the hour," Hanks said at the weekend news conference.

"We tried to work it into screenplay over and over again. Is there a hotel the cardinals can be held in? Isn't there a bigger car, with a bigger back seat?"

Zurer agreed, telling Reuters "you really can't sneak a love scene in the back of a car seat while you chase a murderer."

VATICAN REACTION

Howard has accused the Vatican of trying to hamper his filming in Rome of "Angels & Demons," which had to recreate scenes of the Vatican and some Rome churches in Los Angeles.

He has also blamed the Vatican for using its influence to get an event tied to the movie's Rome premiere canceled.

"They certainly didn't want to cooperate with (the movie)," Howard said.

"The Da Vinci Code" upset the Vatican and some Catholics because of its storyline, in which Jesus married Mary Magdalene and had children, creating a royal bloodline that Church officials kept secret for centuries.

Christianity teaches that Jesus never married, was crucified and rose from the dead.

But "Angels & Demons" does not raise questions about Jesus Christ. Howard said that was one possible reason why the Church has so far avoided the kind of open confrontation that characterized its reaction to "The Da Vinci Code."

"The hot-button issues of 'The Da Vinci Code' spoke to some of the really fundamental principles of the faith. I think it was much more provocative," Howard said.

Vatican observers say the Church also appeared eager to avoid giving publicity to the movie by reacting to it.

"I hope the movie is very respectful to people of faith and we went out of our way to make sure that there are characters that make very valid arguments for all the good that the Church also accomplishes," Howard said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE5436WX20090504?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0

Wolverine slashes US competition

The action adventure film X-Men Origins: Wolverine has slashed its way to the top of the North American box office, early figures show.

The comic book prequel took $87m (£58.2m) in its opening weekend despite an unfinished copy being leaked on the internet a month before its release.

Globally, the movie took another $73m (£49m) in ticket sales.

The film, starring Hugh Jackman, tells the story of mutant James Logan seeking revenge for his girlfriend's death.

Chris Aronson of Twentieth Century Fox called the opening figure "fantastic" after estimating a $70m (£47m) opening.

US BOX OFFICE 1. X-Men Origins: Wolverine - $87m 2. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past - $15.3m 3. Obsessed - $12.2m 4. 17 Again - $6.4m 5. Monsters vs Aliens - $5.8m Source: Media By Numbers

He also noted box office takings may have been affected by other issues including the swine flu outbreak that shut cinemas in Mexico and a high profile basketball game in the US.

Aronson added he was confident the film would still continue to perform well, despite the release of other big budget films in May including Star Trek, Terminator: Salvation and The Da Vinci Code sequel, Angels and Demons.

"When there are quality films to be seen, the marketplace will expand to accommodate everybody," he said.

Elsewhere on the chart, romantic comedy Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, starring Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner, opened at number two with $15.3m (£10.3m).

Last week's number one, stalking thriller Obsessed, fell two places to three, while Zac Efron comedy 17 Again remained at four.

Animated film Monsters vs Aliens climbed back up the chart to five.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8032262.stm