Can foes shave 'Harry' legs?
Vin, 'Wives,' furry feline try to beat wizards
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With the boy wizard still working his magic, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," from Warner Bros., is expected to dominate the box office in its second week.
That leaves the three pics opening this weekend fighting for No. 2: Universal's "The Chronicles of Riddick" at 2,760 locations, Paramount's "The Stepford Wives" with 3,057 playdates, and 20th Century Fox's "Garfield."
The new pics will also have to contend with "Shrek 2," which in its fourth week could gross in the mid-20s, in line with estimates for the newcomers.
The coming weekend's B.O. mashup is a marked change from the relatively orderly blockbuster-per-week pace that the summer season has started on.
After "Potter" grossed $93.7 million in its opening weekend, a 50% decline in its sophomore session would mean a take in the mid-40s, which should be more than enough to take the top spot.
Warners distrib prexy Dan Fellman said the third "Potter" pic seemed to be taking well to its summer launch. Midweek figures on "Azkaban" are running well ahead of the second pic in the series, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets."
"Our midweeks are sensational," Fellman said. "We're doing about $3 million a day better than the last one."
Monday through Wednesday, "Azkaban" picked up $22.6 million, while "Chamber" did $14.1 million in its first three weekdays in 2002. The first pic, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" did best in the series, though, grossing $26.9 million in that span.
Likewise, "Azkaban's" cume of $116 million is just behind the $117 million "Sorcerer's Stone" had drawn in its first six days.
In recent days, tracking research has shown a strong uptick in interest from young males in U's Vin Diesel vehicle, "The Chronicles of Riddick."
By serving a sci-fi aud that really hasn't had much in the market since April's "Hellboy," "Riddick" may have the best shot of the newcomers of placing second this week.
"It's the kind of film we knew would pop closer to the weekend," said U's distrib prexy Nikki Rocco. "It's different than anything in the marketplace."
Meanwhile tracking has been showing increased interest in Nicole Kidman starrer "Stepford Wives."
Par's distrib topper Wayne Lewellen said, "We're positioned for this audience as well as we could be. The majority of the product out now is young male and action, with the exceptions of 'Harry Potter' and 'Shrek' which is going to be the major competition."
Fox is hoping that the stellar performance of those two pics has primed interest in family fare, giving its Bill Murray-voiced "Garfield" a boost.
"There's been so many families going to pictures in a big way," Fox distrib chief Bruce Snyder said. "And a lot of people have already seen those two films."
Pointing to the $326 million cume for "Shrek" and $116 million for "Potter," Snyder added, "If I can get a decent portion of those two numbers, I'll be fine."
In addition, United Artists will expand its laffer "Saved!" to 549 theaters in 80 markets. Pic, which was on 31 screens last weekend, has grossed $1.1 million in three weeks.
In limited openings, Fox Searchlight will launch laffer "Napoleon Dynamite" on six screens in Gotham and Southern California. Pic goes wide on July 23. Dada bows doc "Broadway: The Golden Age" at the Angelika and Sutton Place in Gotham, and Arenas Entertainment will debut "Imagining Argentina" on one screen at L.A.'s Westside Pavillion.
