Fox looks to win the weekend box office with its fantasy pick-up The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader [NARN3], the third film in the C.S. Lewis series originally distributed by Disney. While the first installment The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe opened to $65 million five years ago on its way to $292 million, the sequel Price Caspian debuted with $55 million but finished at just $141 million. With the focus back on adventure rather than action, Walden Media hopes to recapture some of the lost family audience. Docking into 3555 theaters, Voyage of the Dawn Treader may bring in about $40 million.
One would expect having Johnny Depp [JDEPP] and Angelina Jolie [AJOLI] together for the first time would bring box office sizzle. Unfortunately, the early word on The Tourist [TOURI] is showing otherwise. Sony’s marketing has been uninspiring. Poor reviews for the PG-13 rated film would be no help in attracting adult moviegoers during the holiday season. Perhaps audiences are tired of the third espionage caper set in Europe this year. The Tourist may pocket around $24 million from 2756 locations.
After the usual post-Thanksgiving decline, Tangled [RAPUN] should hold up better in its third weekend. The Disney animated film should finish third with at least $12 million. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 [HPOT7] continues to decay quickly, but should still place fourth at around $9 million.
That’s the whisper from the trading floor.
Tag(s): NARN3, JDEPP, AJOLI, TOURI, RAPUN, HPOT7