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The odd-couple comedy I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry looks as if it could elbow its way to the top of the North American box-office heap. Simultaneously, the upbeat musical Hairspray could establish itself as a singing-and-dancing summer hit.
Warner Bros. Pictures' Phoenix, which burst on the scene Wednesday, July 11, took in $159.3 million in its first seven days. But this weekend, it faces competition not just from movies, but also from the release of author J.K. Rowling's final volume in her monumentally magically series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. With the book due to go on sale at 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning, die-hard Potter fans will presumably spend the weekend on a reading binge rather than taking in the screen Harry. On the other hand, hardcore Pottermaniacs probably already have checked out the movie.
Having grossed $77.1 million last weekend, the PG-13-rated Phoenix is expected to fall by 50 percent to 55 percent this round for a weekend take of $33 million to $38 million.
That opens the door for Chuck, playing in 3,495 theaters, to power into the top spot. The PG-13 comedy from Universal Pictures stars Adam Sandler as a New York firefighter and resolute ladies' man who agrees to get hitched to his straight firefighting buddy (Kevin James) so that the two can collect domestic partnership benefits. Dennis Dugan, who helmed the star's Happy Gilmore and Big Daddy, directs.
COMEDY TRACK RECORD
Sandler's comedy vehicles have proven consistent box-office draws for nearly a decade. (His dramatic turns like Reign over Me and Spanglish are another story.) From 1998's Waterboy to last summer's Click, Sandler's broad comedies have consistently opened in the high-$30 million to low-$40 million range. His biggest opener was 2005's The Longest Yard, which bowed to $47.6 million.
Chuck, flirting as it does with the issue of gay marriage, could alienate a few in Sandler's regular-guy fan base, but the movie should still check in the high-$30 million range, which should allow it to outshine Phoenix.
Female moviegoers are likely to flock to New Line Cinema's Hairspray, the '60s-set musical built around an American Bandstand-like dance show. Based on the 1988 John Waters film, which was turned into a Broadway musical in 2002 with a score by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and now returns to the big screen, the film boasts a someone-for-everyone cast: John Travolta in the drag role of Edna Turnblad, Queen Latifah, High School Musical heartthrob Zac Efron and newcomer Nikki Blonsky. Drawing on his roots as a choreographer, Adam Shankman (The Wedding Planner) directs.
Although the movie will be competing against Phoenix for the attention of younger females, it could dance to something approaching the $20 million mark in 3,121 theaters.
In limited release, Fox Searchlight will launch its sci-fi space exploration movie Sunshine, directed by Danny Boyle, who had a hit five years ago with Searchlight's 28 Days Later. The R-rated film, about an attempt to save the dying sun, will bow in 10 theaters.
Sony Pictures Classics will take out its Oscar-winning foreign language film, The Lives of Others, from director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, for a final victory lap. Although the film has been in theaters for 23 weeks and was on 19 screens last weekend, SPC is moving it into 253 theaters this weekend in hopes of establishing a new record for the American release of a German feature, the current record holder being 1982's Das Boot with $10.9 million.
Warners will also use the weekend to whet moviegoers' appetites for No Reservations, the romantic comedy about two top chefs starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart. The film will play national sneak previews on Saturday.
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