Matt Damon is headed to the utopian space station known as this weekend, and Sony Pictures is hoping he will knock a few “Planes” out of the sky on his way into the box-office stratosphere.
The sci-fi class warfare tale “Elysium” will face its strongest competition from Disney’s “Planes” as they enter theaters alongside the comedy “We’re the Millers” and a second installment in the adaptation of the “Percy Jackson” series.
“Elysium” is filmmaker Neill Blomkamp’s follow-up to his acclaimed “District 9.” The dystopian story, set in a future where the rich live in luxury aboard a space station while the working class toil in squalor below, marks Damon’s first foray into full-on, live-action science fiction. Damon expressed his fondness for the genre in a recent MTV News interview, in which he cited “Aliens,” “Blade Runner” and as favorites (and said nice things about JJ Abrams).
The year’s other big-budget, non-sequel sci-fi stories — Tom Cruise’s “Oblivion,” director Guillermo del Toro’s “Pacific Rim” and Will Smith’s box-office bomb “After Earth” — preceded Damon’s R-rated picture. All things considered, industry watchers have predicted an opening weekend in the low to mid-$30 million range. That would put the $115 million fantasy at #1, though a few million shy of the debuts of “Oblivion,” “Pacific Rim” and 2009’s “District 9.”
The #2 position should belong to Disney’s “Cars” spin-off which features comedian Dane Cook in the lead voice role. While technically not a Pixar film, Disney Toon Studios’ “Planes” does boast Pixar boss John Lasseter as executive producer. Nevertheless, critics have been less kind to “Planes” than even the worst-reviewed Pixar film ever, “Cars 2.” But “Planes” should muster between $24 and $28 million in its debut, against a production budget around $50 million.
Jason Sudeikis will test his post-“Saturday Night Live” power in which reunites the comedic actor with his “Horrible Bosses” co-star Jennifer Aniston. The Internet was already abuzz about Aniston’s performance (and physique) as a stripper in the comedy by the time the two stars sat down with MTV News’ Josh Horowitz for a candid talk about weed, lap dances, “Office Space,” the “Friends” theme and Warwick Davis.
“We’re the Millers” had a “rotten” score on film criticism aggregator Rotten Tomatoes when it opened on Wednesday, but audiences who saw the comedy during its first day in theaters assigned it a CinemaScore of A–. “Millers” should land at #3 in the weekend race, with a five-day total of around $30 million; not bad for a $37 million movie.
“We’re the Millers” made an estimated $6.7 million on Wednesday, which was more than in the sequel. When the story begins, “he’s filled with self-doubt,” revealed Logan Lerman.
The first “Percy Jackson” movie made just $88.4 million domestically during its run, with an additional $137 million in overseas revenue. “Monsters” should make about $19 million this weekend for a five-day total of around $28 million.
Last weekend’s #1 film, Denzel Washington and Mark Wahblerg’s should round out the top five. Hugh Jackman’s sixth turn as should come in right behind, with “The Smurfs 2” trailing the mutant hero.
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