Inside Move: 'Cinderella' ball delayed
Crowe injury punches U. pic's bow
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The "Cinderella" move comes after production on the pic was delayed to April 19 because Crowe dislocated his shoulder in January while training for the film.
Brian Grazer and Howard's Imagine Entertainment is producing the pic. Miramax co-finances.
"The injury is no more serious than we thought before, but it did require some delays, and we now have a very ambitious production schedule," U distrib prexy Nikki Rocco said.
Sticking to the original date would have required compressing the entire production sked to less than eight months. They now have 11 months.
The studio's main concern was leaving enough room for marketing. "You can't just throw it out there. This is a very intricately woven campaign that needs time, just as it was with 'A Beautiful Mind,' " Rocco explained.
"Cinderella Man" had been considered a likely contender at next year's Oscars, but the pic now won't be eligible until the 2006 ceremony.
The March 18 date is the same slot from which U released "Erin Brockovich" in 2000. Pic grossed $125 million and garnered a best actress Oscar for Julia Roberts. U's confidence in releasing Oscar contenders earlier in the year was also bolstered by noms that summer opener "Seabiscuit" picked up this year.
The Dec. 17 date is now only slightly less crowded. Currently vying in a release date game of chicken: Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator," from Miramax and Warner Bros.; Paramount's Jim Carrey starrer "Lemony Snicket: A Series of Unfortunate Events"; and Sony's "Spanglish," starring Adam Sandler and directed by James Brooks.
While the three are very different films, big-budget pics need to play broadly. Releasing them against each other could hurt their potential.
For the last three years, the berth has been dominated by "The Lord of the Rings" installments, showing that a huge aud is available the week before Christmas.
But the first go-round with the compressed Academy Awards season may have boosted Dec. 17's desirability. Studios seem to have concluded that Christmas, while still commercially a huge weekend, comes too late in the Oscar process to serve as an awards launchpad.
Still, none of the studios with pics still skedded for Dec. 17 said they were reconsidering their release plans.
A Sony rep said, "When you have the goods, as we believe we have with James L. Brooks' 'Spanglish,' you have one of the big guns of the holiday period, and we believe this film will play well anywhere we slot it, including Dec. 17."
Studios typically jostle for the calendar's best dates. Who'll blink first in this round remains to be seen.
