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Cell-Phone Cameras Cover London Attacks
8 July 2005 (StudioBriefing)
Television may increasingly rely on disaster coverage by the victims themselves, judging from Thursday's news reports from the scenes of the London bombings. Jon Klein, president of CNN/US, told today's (Friday) Los Angeles Times. "These days, you just have to be in the wrong place at the right time, and you too can cover the news." Photos and video captured with third-generation cell phones by people escaping from the wreckage of London subway trains provided the first on-the-scene coverage of the disaster since London police immediately sealed off subway entrances, barring reporters and photographers from the scenes. Sandy MacIntyre, director of news for Associated Press Television News, directed his staff to ask witnesses if they had taken any pictures and quickly agreed to pay one man $250 for his video of the double-decker bus that had been hit by the bombers; likewise London TV stations asked viewers to transmit any photos of the bomb scenes to them. Independent Television News (ITN) said that it had received dozens of clips, some of them transmitted online, others delivered by hand to their studios. One ITN editor told today's (Friday) Los Angeles Times that some of the images were too gruesome to air. The BBC and ITN posted some of the amateur clips on its websites. Many of the stills and videos were also shared with U.S. networks, who had sent most of their reporters and camera crews to the G8 conference in Gleneagles, Scotland. However, only one U.S. network, ABC, aired any them during primetime. ABC's Primetime Live scrapped its usual features format and replaced it with coverage of the London attacks. (Earlier it had also scrapped its planned movie, Reign of Fire, which takes place in post-apocalyptic London, replacing it with the family comedy Big Fat Liar.). The coverage continued at 11:35 p.m. on ABC's Nightline, which included interviews with former terrorists.

More 'Wedding' Gifts for Movie's Writer-Star
5 September 2002 (StudioBriefing)
As My Big Fat Greek Wedding charged way out front in the box-office race, Spyglass Entertainment (The Sixth Sense, The Insider, Reign of Fire) announced Wednesday that it had signed a seven-figure deal with Wedding writer-star Nia Vardalos to star in a movie that she has written called Connie and Carla Do L.A. Spyglass is distributed domestically by Disney. On Labor Day (Monday), Wedding had pulled slightly ahead of Disney's Signs at the box office. On Tuesday, it took a commanding lead, earning $1,027,000 to Signs' $875,000. Several analysts are predicting that it will hold the lead through next weekend.

Goldmember Powers Box Office
30 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
The goldnumber for Goldmember last weekend was $73.1 million, a record for July, a record for a comedy, and a record for a New Line film. The figure was particularly impressive given the fact that the original Austin Powers movie took in only $9.5 million when it opened in 1997, while the first sequel, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, earned $54.9 million in 1999. The question remains, however, whether Austin Powers in Goldmember, given the stiff competition it will have to face in the weeks ahead, will exceed the $205.4 million that Shagged raked in during the course of its run three years ago. Analysts pointed out that clearly the film faced little competition this past weekend, as evidenced by the fact that the box office as a whole was down slightly from the same weekend a year ago, despite higher ticket prices.

The top ten films over the weekend, according to final figures compiled by Exhibitor Relations (figures in parentheses represent total gross to date): 1. Austin Powers in Goldmember, New Line, $73,071,188, 1 Wk. ($76,624,907 Opened Thursday); 2. The Road to Perdition, DreamWorks, $11,106,213, 3 Wks. ($65,647,145); 3. Stuart Little 2, Sony, $10,612,127, 2 Wks. ($34,724,638); 4. Men in Black II , Sony, $8,477,202, 4 Wks. ($173,380,738); 5. K-19: The Widowmaker, Paramount, $7,266,631, 2 Wks. ($24,961,696); 6. The Country Bears, Disney, $5,309,675, (New); 7. Mr. Deeds, Sony, $4,247,371, 5 Wks. ($116,163,991); 8. Reign of Fire, Disney, $3,469,035, 3 Wks. ($36,406,517); 9. Minority Report, 20th Century Fox, $3,124,360, 6 Wks. ($123,375,096); 10. My Big Fat Greek Wedding, IFC Films, $3,004,597, 15 Wks. ($35,417,552).

Yeah, Baby!
29 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
Defying critics and box-office prognosticators alike, New Line's Austin Powers in Goldmember, starring Mike Myers and Beyoncé Knowles, took in an estimated $71.45 million over the weekend, making it the highest-grossing July debut in history and the best debut for a comedy film ever. The film also earned $3.6 million during preview performances on Thursday. The opening alone nearly covered the cost of making the film, said to be $80 million, $25 million of which went to Myers. The Tom Hanks starrer Road to Perdition remained in second place, earning $11 million to increase its gross to date to $65.6 million. Stuart Little 2, which remained the favorite during weekdays last week, attracting out-of-school kids, came in third with $10.7 million, to bring its total to $34.8 million. But it remained a disappointment given its production cost of about $130 million. The only other film to open wide was the poorly reviewed Disney movie The Country Bears, which earned $5.2 million -- not all that bad, considering the fact that it cost only $20 million to make.

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations: 1. Austin Powers in Goldmember, $71.5 million; 2. Road To Perdition, $11 million; 3. Stuart Little 2, $10,7 million; 4. Men In Black II, $8.7 million; 5. K-19: The Widowmaker, $7.3 million; 6. The Country Bears, $5.2 million; 7. Mr. Deeds, $4.2 million; 8. Reign of Fire, $3.3 million; 9. Minority Report, $3.1 million; 10. My Big Fat Greek Wedding, $3 million.

Little Was Littler
23 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
When the clock struck one (or thereabouts) on Monday, the mouse ran down the clock, forced into second-place as final box-office ticket sales revealed that DreamWorks' Road to Perdition was the highest-grossing film over the weekend, not Sony's Stuart Little 2 as estimates had indicated. Perdition reached the top spot despite the fact that it was screened in only 2,159 locations, against 3,255 for Little and 3,641 for the No. 3 film, Men in Black II.Overall, the box office tallied $119.8 million, down 18 percent from the same weekend a year ago.

The top ten films over the weekend, according to final figures compiled by Exhibitor Relations (figures in parentheses represent total gross to date): 1. Road to Perdition, DreamWorks, $15,412,515, 2 Wks. ($47,304,790); 2. Stuart Little 2, Sony, $15,115,152, (New); 3. Men In Black II, Sony, $14,552,335, 3 Wks. ($158,127,629); 4. K-19: The Widowmaker, Paramount, $12,778,459, (New); 5. Reign of Fire, Disney, $7,317,994, 2 Wks. ($29,246,331); 6. Mr. Deeds, Sony, $7,312,128, 4 Wks. ($107,630,816); 7. Eight Legged Freaks, Warner Bros., $6,485,458, 1 Wk. (Opened Wednesday), ($9,080,158); 8. Halloween: Resurrection, Miramax/Dimension, $5,520,536, 2 Wks. ($21,952,979); 9. Lilo & Stitch, Disney, $4,973,660, 5 Wks. ($128,431,916); 10. Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, MGM, $4,667,895, 2 Wks. ($18,726,625).

Even at No. 1, Stuart Little Lives Up to Its Name
22 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
The scorching hot summer box office suddenly cooled off over the weekend. Although Stuart Little 2 opened as the weekend's top film, its $15.6-million take could not have brought much pleasure to executives at Columbia, who reportedly okayed expenditures of more than $130 million on the mouse movie. (Many analysts had predicted a $25-million opening for it.) Sony distribution chief Jeff Blake told today's (Monday) Los Angeles Times: "With a family film, you hope for a good opening and great legs. ... You hope for seven-day-a-week business, where whatever you lose in opening weekend you hope to pick up in the longevity of the picture." But the biggest disappointment may have been the tanking of Harrison Ford's submarine thriller, K-19 -- The Widowmaker, which opened in fourth place with just $13.1 million, about half of Ford's salary for the movie, which reportedly cost a total of $100 million to make. In its second week DreamWorks' Road to Perdition came within about $30,000 of taking the lead (and it still might end up there when final figures are released late Monday). With an estimated gross of $15.57 million, the Tom Hanks-Steven Spielberg collaboration remained in second place. Eight Legged Freaks, the only other movie to debut over the weekend, produced the kind of horror at the box office that critics said it lacked on the screen, as it earned only $6.7 million ($9.3 million since its opening on Wednesday). After two weeks at No. 1, Men in Black II dropped to third place with just $15 million.

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations: 1. Stuart Little 2, $15.6 million; 1. Road to Perdition, $15.57 million; 3. Men in Black II, $15 million; 4. K-19: The Widowmaker, $13.1 million; 5. Mr. Deeds, $7.3 million; 6. Reign of Fire, $7.1 million; 7. Eight Legged Freaks, $6.7 million; 8. Halloween: Resurrection, $5.4 million; 9. Lilo & Stitch, $5.1 million; 10. The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, $4.8 million.

Road To Remuneration
16 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
DreamWorks' plan to open Road to Perdition modestly, allow word-of-mouth to build, and increase the number of theaters slowly may have appeared unnecessarily conservative given last weekend's results, which showed audiences packing theaters showing the Tom Hanks/Paul Newman feature. Exhibited in 1,797 theaters, the film averaged $12,287 per location. That compares with the $6,760 average that the No. 1 film, Men in Black II, earned at 3,611 theaters. Nevertheless, MiB2 was able to add $24.4 million to its take to bring its total gross after two weeks to $132.7 million. Road to Perdition followed with $22.1 million.

The top ten films over the weekend, according to final figures compiled by Exhibitor Relations (figures in parentheses represent total gross to date):
1. Men in Black II, Sony, $24,410,311, 2 Wks. ($132,688,511); 2. Road to Perdition, DreamWorks, $22,079,481, (New); 3. Reign of Fire, Disney, $15,632,281, (New); 4. Halloween: Resurrection, Miramax/Dimension, $12,292,121, (New); 5. Mr. Deeds, Sony, $10,842,415, 3 Wks. ($93,975,613); 6. Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, MGM, $9,537,123, (New); 7. Lilo & Stitch, Disney, $8,024,738, 4 Wks. ($118,411,367); 8. Like Mike, 20th Century Fox, $7,833,279, 2 Wks. ($32,819,934); 9. Minority Report, 20th Century Fox, $7,216,069, 4 Wks. ($110,137,457); 10. The Bourne Identity, Universal, $5,761,380, 5 Wks. ($99,026,945).

A Road More Traveled
15 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
Road to Perdition, starring Tom Hanks and Paul Newman, failed to unseat Men in Black II from the top spot at the box office over the weekend, but it did earn more money than most analysts had expected -- $22.1 million, despite playing in half the number of theaters that featured MiB2. The Will Smith/Tommy Lee Jones sequel, nevertheless, took in $25 million, bringing its total after 12 days to $133.3 million. In a remarkably hot weekend (figuratively and climatologically) Reign of Fire also performed strongly, taking in $16 million despite mostly negative reviews. Halloween: Resurrection resurrected the Halloween franchise effectively, earning $12.3 million. The only other film to open wide, The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, earned $10 million -- not bad considering its relatively low cost. Ticket sales for the top 12 films totaled $130.75 million, up nearly 20 percent from the comparable weekend a year ago, according to Exhibitor Relations.

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:
1. Men in Black II, $25 million; 2. Road to Perdition, $22.1 million; 3. Reign of Fire, $16 million; 4. Halloween: Resurrection, $12.3 million; 5. Mr. Deeds, $11 million; 6. The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, $10 million; 7. Like Mike, $7.6 million; 8. Lilo & Stitch, $7.6 million; 9. Minority Report, $7.4 million; 10. The Bourne Identity, $5.8 million.

Crowe To Play Baddie in Robin Hood's Big Screen Return?
15 July 2002 (WENN)
Is Robin Hood set for a return to the big screen - with Russell Crowe playing the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham? Top screenwriters Gregg Chabot and Kevin Peterka have already pitched a role in the planned film to Christian Bale, who stars in their latest movie Reign of Fire. They also want Boogie Nights actor Philip Seymour Hoffman to play an overweight Robin in the film, which will be set 10 years after the Robin Hood story traditionally ends.

Movie Reviews: Reign Of Fire
12 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
Richard Zanuck, who produced Road to Perdition, certainly has his bets hedged. He's also the producer of Reign of Fire, a popcorn, special-effects thriller that few critics like but could well beat the perdition out of Perdition. All of the critics like the dragon that the special effects team created for the film, but Gene Seymour in Newsday writes that the film "basically one great set piece surrounded by thickets of iron filings, oily hair and knotty-pine acting." Elizabeth Weitzman in the New York Daily News describes it as feeling "more like a cross between a video game and the latest installment of the Highlander series." George Thomas in the Akron Beacon Journal says that while he was watching the movie, "I counted at least 10 people who walked out of this one. Unfortunately, movie critics don't have that luxury." Still, the film does receive enough positive reviews to fill a modest-sized ad, including one from Elvis Mitchell in the New York Times, who comments: "It has a jamming B-picture buzz--the kind of swift filmmaking and high spirits that have been missing from movies for a while."

Will 'Road' Make Inroads on 'MiB II'?
11 July 2002 (StudioBriefing)
Box office analysts have turned out to be less enthusiastic than movie critics about the appeal that the Tom Hanks-Paul Newman-Jude Law thriller The Road to Perdition is likely to generate when it is released this weekend. They point out that the film will be up against some stiff competition, including the second week of Men in Black 2 and three other wide releases. (In particular, Reign of Fire reportedly offers all the excitement that the summer crowd of popcorn crunchers has been looking for but has yet to find.) Perdition also is rated R, is being released in only 1,790 theaters, and features Hanks playing an unsavory figure. "How many summer moviegoers will be in the mood for a dark and serious drama will be the interesting question," commented Gitesh Pandya on his Box Office Guru website. Most analysts are forecasting that the film will take in between $14 million and $18 million, putting it well behind MiB2, which is expected to retain the box-office lead with about $25 million to $30 million.

McConaughey Saves Life
2 July 2002 (WENN)
Actor Matthew McConaughey stepped in to become a real-life hero to save a man in the throes of a seizure. The New York Daily News reports that the fast-acting film hunk administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a sound man from Access Hollywood who had suffered a seizure during McConaughey's Reign of Fire interview at the Regency Hotel in New York. The heroic act sustained the man until medics arrived. He's reportedly in stable condition at Lenox Hill Hospital.

Would They Have Substituted Seattle For Palm Springs?
24 April 2001 (StudioBriefing)
Disney's upcoming Reign of Fire, supposedly set in Norfolk, a county of England that rises no more than 300 ft. above sea level at any spot, was actually filmed in a mountainous area of Ireland, the London Times reported today (Tuesday). Shaun Hindle, a Norfolk native who worked on the set for the movie, told the newspaper that when he brought up the matter of the mountains to the filmmakers, their view was that "the film would probably be seen by 200 million people across the world and only about two million would know Norfolk was flat."