Fox shuffles film schedule
Studio sees daylight to avoid pic glut
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Fox said Monday that it's pushing back the release of Dwayne Johnson-Ashley Judd family pic "The Tooth Fairy" from Nov. 13 to Jan. 22. Studio also announced that "Date Night," starring Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg and James Franco, will open April 9.
Fox had already set fantasy-adventure "Percy Jackson," based on the bestselling young adult novel, to open Feb. 12.
For years, studios held back their bigger titles for summer and holidays, including Easter. But that pattern has changed as more and more movies crowded into the pipeline. Distributors had no choice but to use off-peak months for at least some of their titles.
The record-breaking 2009 box office has provided the most compelling evidence to date that moviegoers will turn out at any time of the year -- if they like the choices on the marquee.
A string of recent movies has done the sort of business usually seen only in summer: Sony's "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" took in $169 million worldwide, Fox's "Taken" bagged $218.3 million globally and, most recently, Universal's "Fast and Furious" has racked up $227.1 million through Sunday.
In 2007, Warners broke new ground when "300" opened to a domestic gross of nearly $72 million in March. Studio followed up with "10,000 BC" during the same month in 2008 and "Watchmen" this year, though to lesser results.
Paramount monster pic "Cloverfield" debuted to a record-breaking $41 million in January 2008.
This year, "Taken" bucked tradition by opening on Super Bowl weekend, a frame studios generally avoid for their male-driven actioners. The film debuted to a strong $24 million.
Fox distribution execs say that while Thanksgiving is a lucrative frame for family fare, it's also very crowded. "Tooth Fairy" has far less competition on its new date.
Likewise, the studio believes "Date Night" and "Percy" will have more room to breathe by opening in April and February, respectively, than in more crowded corridors.
"It's better sometimes to open a big movie when there is less competition," Fox prexy of distribution Bruce Snyder said.
That doesn't mean there won't be any competition, however: "Percy" opens the same weekend as Disney's 3-D update of "Beauty and the Beast."
Fox made a number of other additions to its release calendar on Monday. The studio is making Jack Black topliner "Gulliver's Travels" one of its 2010 summer event pics. That pic will open June 4, one week after Disney's "Prince of Persia."
Fox will now open Wes Anderson's stop-motion animated film "Fantastic Mr. Fox" on Nov. 13, instead of Nov. 6. Film's voice cast includes George Clooney, Cate Blanchett and Meryl Streep. "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" is set for release April 2.
