Will fanboys support Clone Wars? Or will Thunder rain on the Jedi?
Ben Fritz of Variety:
...After bowing to a decent $6.5 million on Wednesday, DreamWorks' ``Tropic Thunder,'' which stars helmer Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey Jr., is going into the weekend as a slight favorite to come out on top of the box office. But the wild card, insiders largely agree, is Warner Bros.' ``Star Wars: the Clone Wars.''
Based on the upcoming Cartoon Network series, the LucasFilm-produced toon is expected to appeal primarily to young boys. But if enough older ``Star Wars'' fans attend, ``Clone Wars'' could end up the frame's winner.
``It's hard to get a handle on how much of the larger `Star Wars' fan base will come out,'' noted Warner Bros. domestic distribution prexy Dan Fellman.
``Clone Wars'' is playing 3,452 theaters, compared to 3,319 for ``Tropic Thunder.'' By Sunday, DreamWorks is looking for its comedy to gross in the mid-30s or higher. That could put it lower than ``Pineapple Express,'' which grossed $41.3 million in its first five days last week. Given the pic's reported $90 million budget, compared to a studio estimated $27 million for ``Pineapple,'' a lower bow for ``Thunder'' would have to be something of a disappointment.
Also opening wide on Friday is Fox's horror pic ``Mirrors.'' Kiefer Sutherland starrer will be at 2,664 playdates and is expected to gross in the low- to mid-teens. That could put it behind the fifth frame of Warner's ``The Dark Knight'' and the second for ``Pineapple Express.''
On a smaller scale, MGM opens Woody Allen's new pic ``Vicky Christina Barcelona'' for the Weinstein Co. at 692 locations. Based on past Allen pics that debuted with similar screen counts, a gross in the low- to mid-single digits is likely for the Spain-set comedy, which stars Scarlett Johansson and Javier Bardem.
``Fly Me to the Moon,'' the new toon that Summit is releasing for producer N Wave at just 452 playdates, is expect to gross in low single digits. Because it's playing at most theaters in digital 3-D, however, the pic may get a boost from higher ticket prices.
Overture is also opening Luke Wilson starrer ``Henry Poole Is Here'' at 527 theaters, with modest grosses expected.
And Freestyle is expanding Alan Rickman starrer ``Bottle Shock'' from 48 to 117 playdates over the frame...
Garth Franklin of Dark Horizons calls Thunder debut "soft"
Nicole Sperling of EW:
The box-office reign of ''The Dark Knight'' may be over as Ben Stiller's war movie spoof storms into theaters...
Thunder has the inside track to be sure...But the geeks are a powerful ticket buying block.
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