Summer 2007 Promises a Big Payday at the Box Office
Looking at the calendar for the summer of 2007 it looks like it’s going to be great summer for studios and the the theaters. Most of the movies are sequels (or threequells) but one thing is sure, Hollywood is definitely looking for a big pay day this summer.
First out of the gate is the almost guaranteed hit Spider-Man 3. Kirsten Dunst and Tobey Maguire reprise their roles at Peter Parker and his long time romantic interest Mary Jane Watson. New to this episode are the villans Sandman and the symbiotic black spider suit known as Venom. The special effects for this movie are going to be top notch and the highlight of the summer. The first Spiderman movie from 2002 had an 821 million dollar pay day, Spiderman II had a 780 million dollar pay day. Spiderman III will be swinging into theaters the on May 4th of 2007.
Since we’re talking about movies that bring in the green the popular Shrek series brings in the green in more ways than any other movie this summer. Mike Meyers, Cameron Dias, and Eddie Murphy will be brining their voice talents back to the familiar trio of friends. Justin Timberlake new to the cast will be lending his voice to Artie. The Shrek franchise remains strong and if early merchandise sales are any indication audiences haven’t grown tired of the Ogre couple. The first Shrek movie brought in 267 million greenbacks while Shrek II had a much bigger pay day of 440 million. Look for Shrek the Third to stomp into the theaters on May 18th.
Who’s got a really good chance at stealing the treasure this summer, none other than Johnny Depp reprising his role as eccentric Jack Sparrow. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End marks the end of the story line with Captain Jack, Orlando Bloom and Kiera Knightly. Also returning in what will be ultimate pirate movie for many years to come are Captain Barbosa and Davy Jones . Pirate themed merchandise and riders at both Disney World and Disneyland are at all record levels for the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, so if POTC III is successful, expect a new story arc with a new cast characters. The Curse of the Black Pearl brought in 650 Million while Dead Man’s Chest had a 432 million dollar pay day. Expectations are very high for this movie and movie executives hope it will bring in loyal fans who want to get a final view of Captain Jack on the big screen. This movie to sails into port on May 25th.
If movies were judged strictly by the quality of the stars in them, then Ocean’s Thirteen would win hands down. With the exception Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta Jones all of the main characters from the first two movies will be reprising their roles. Director Steven Sondeberg says this will be the final chapter in the series. Andy Garcia who played the role of Terry Benedict will be one of the “good guys” in this chapter as the team of con men try to take down Al Pachino who plays a rival Las Vegas casino owner. This is one of the few blockbuster movies this summer that won’t have a huge special effects budget. Oceans Eleven had a 183 million dollar pay day and Ocean’s Twelve brought in 125 million. Oceans Thirteen should have a strong showing but it’s a long shot to have the biggest pay day when it rolls into theaters June 8th.
If you are a comic book or action adventure fan chances are Fantastic Four Rise of the Silver Surfer is on your list of must see movies this summer. The original four are back in their original roles and joined by long time comic book favorite the Silver Surfer. The Silver Surfer bears an on screen resemblance to the liquid terminator from T2, how well he will be received with modern audiences is still a question. Expect this movie to be a companied with a big merchandising push especially in the action figure category.The first Fantastic Four had a pay day of 154 million and the studio is looking for a similar performance when the movie is released on June 15th.
If you’re ready for a real blast from the past put on your seat belts and strap in as Bruce Willis tries to bring back John McClane and the Die Hard movie. Live Free or Die Hard is guaranteed to be one of the most action packed, over the top special effects, blow up the most stuff in the most amazing and completely unbelievable ways possible movie of the summer. If the helicopter crash scene from the trailer is any indication of what’s in store, suspend your disbelief at the door and grab a big bucket of pop corn and just enjoy the ride. Die Hard from 1988 brought in 83 million and Die Hard with a Vengeance brought in 100 Million. The question is will there be enough of a story to keep people coming after the opening weekend or will Die Hard just die on June 29th.
Can Pixar continue on its undefeated streak of putting out only hits, we’ll find out this summer with Ratatouille. It’s the tale of a rat who wants to be a chef and a chef who can’t cook. Ok so maybe every Pixar trailer leaves you wondering if they can pull it off and make it interesting, but you have to give them benefit of the doubt with a history of movies like Toy Story, The Incredibles and Finding Nemo. You also have to admit Ratatouille is a fun word to say even if you aren’t 8 years old. Pixars last movie Cars crossed the finish line with a 244 million dollar pay day not bad for House of Mouse.
If you grew up in the 80’s one of the movies you were a fan of was probably Transformers, and you are eagerly awaiting the chance to see Optimus Prime strut his stuff on the big screen. The official trailers are a little light on the robot sequences, however some of the bootleg videos show a lot more promise. One thing you’re sure to see a lot of is Tranformers toys, expect an extensive line of merchandise that will rival any Star Wars Movie. The original animated movie had a 5.8 million dollar pay day back in 1986 however with the 2007 release having a budget of over 150 million it’s safe to say Hollywood is looking for a little more from the July 4th opening weekend.
If there’s one summer movie that is guaranteed to have a rock solid story it’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. This movie is the 5th chapter in an eventual 7 chapter series. The movie has a huge built in fan base who are eager to follow Harry, Ron and Hermione on their fight with the evil wizard Lord Voldemort, so it’s almost guaranteed to make a profit. The real question is how much longer are fans going to believe the actors playing the magical trio are teenagers when the three have left their teen years two movies ago. The Order of the Phoenix does have some big footsteps to follow, the Sorcerers Stone had had a 761 Million dollar Pay Day, Chamber of Secrets 261 Million, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 249 Million and Goblet of Fire 290 Million. Expect long lines of muggles to magically start lining up on July 13th.
Something that could turn out to be surprise sleeper hit is The Simpsons Movie . Homer, Bart and the whole Springfield gang have been doing their offbeat brand of humor for 20 years and show no sign of letting up. The question is will the fans who can watch the Simpsons on the small screen at home from the comfort of their living rooms, pay to to see a large version of Homer. Producers of the Simpsons Movie have admitted they intentionally will be circulating fake clips, teasers, and scripts so actual plot details are sketchy. However if the comedy writers can deliver, expect it’s popularity to spread with word of mouth marketing the way Shrek did when it first came out in 2001. The Simpsons hits theaters on July 27 D’oh.
After a few weeks of some light hearted movies and comedies we head back into jam packed action adventure territory, with the third chapter in the Mathew Bourne series The Bourne Ultimatum. Matt Damon reprises his role of government trained assassin with a bad case of amnesia. The trailer hints the character gets his memory back but is it really important, heck they could build a plot around him having an overdue library book. As long as their are some good fight scenes and lots of stuff gets blown up, the target audience will be pleased. The Bourne Identity had a 121 million dollar pay day while the Bourne Supremacy brought in 171 million. Expect the Bourne Ultimatum to start kickin butt’s on August 3rd.
Rounding out the summer of 2007 blockbuster lineup is Rush Hour 3 with Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan. In this installment installment the two stars head to Paris France to solve some crime, make some gratuitous jokes at the expense of the French culture, and let Jackie Chan show off his trademark style of karate stunts. Is it me or does this movie series bear an uncanny resemblance to Lethal Weapon series with Mel Gibson and Danny Glover? The original Rush Hour had a 141 million Dollar pay day, while Rush Hour 2 kicked butt with 226 million. Rush Hour 3 busts into theaters August 10th.
There you have it, your summer movie blockbuster line up. Spiderman 3 and Pirates are almost a sure fire lock to have a huge summer pay day. Harry Potter should do well too seeing how Lord of the Rings is gone and Narnia isn’t do for a few months. The biggest question marks surround the kids line up of Shrek, Ratatouille, Transformers and The Simpsons. Shrek looks the most promising but Pixar has a perfect track record, and if The Simpsons can motivate the couch potatoes to leave their living rooms they’ll also have a solid showing. So grab a big bucket of popcorn and large coke (it’s only a quarter more than a medium size you know) sit down and enjoy the show.
