Jack-in-the-Box Office for the weekend of February 12-14

Although it was well expected that "Valentine's Day" would claim the top spot at the Box Office this weekend, it shattered all expectations by taking in $52 million domestically. The opening weekend figure equals the cost of its budget (something few films do opening weekend, though "Dear John" did last week). Making the feat more impressive, the film earned roughly twice what "He's Just Not That Into You" did in its opening weekend of February of last year.

"Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lighting Thief" came in a distant second place with $31 million. While that's a fraction of what a Harry Potter film makes opening weekend, this film was made at a fraction of the cost, and is in a good place to quickly recoup the $95 million dollar investment made by Fox.

"The Wolfman" followed closely behind with $30 million. Although that's an impressive debut for an R-rated horror film (especially one not part of a current franchise a la "Saw"), it's a small fraction of Universal's $150 million dollar investment. Although foreign grosses are not currently available for the other two new films this weekend, it's been released that "The Wolfman" has taken $50 million worldwide, leaving hope that it could turn a profit before the end of it's worldwide theatrical run.

Rounding out the top five, in a reversal from last week is "Avatar" which made $22 million to bring its domestic total to $659 million, followed by "Dear John" which made $15 million to bring its domestic total to $53 million, twice it's $25 million dollar budget.

Winning the per-theater-average race for the week is "My Name is Khan" which sounds like last year's film "Adam" but with a Muslim cast. Needless to say, this film takes on a different dimension being about Muslims in a post-9/11/ America. Fox Searchlight opened the film in similar markets they opened "Slumdog Millionaire" in, and made $15,500 a screen for a total of over $1.8 million.

This being Valentine's day weekend, as well as a long holiday weekend and the middle of Oscar season, audiences were offered a variety of choices at the movies. Did you go for more commercial fare or finally catch up on "Precious"? Please let us know in the comments below, and continue to have a wonderful holiday weekend at the movies.

Happy Valentine's Day from all of us at The Awards Circuit!

In honor of the day:

-Hopefully you and your loved one has a great day!

The Art Directors will announce their winners shortly...

...and here are the winners:

Period Film: Sherlock Holmes
Fantasy Film: Avatar
Contemporary design: The Hurt Locker

-Thoughts?

The Oscar Circuit is taking a break...

...but it'll be back up and running real soon, so stay tuned!

Academy Idol 3: Top 5 Results

Apologies for the lateness, folks. Here are this week's results:

Thoughts?

Entertainment Weekly's Dave Karger puts out his Oscar Predictions!

Behold:

Best Picture: The Hurt Locker
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges
Best Actress: Sandra Bullock
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz
Best Supporting Actress: Mo’Nique
Best Original Screenplay: The Hurt Locker
Best Adapted Screenplay: Up in the Air

-That's how I see the race as well...thoughts?

Tarantino gives a rather interesting interview...

I saw this while watching MSNBC, and now that I've found the embed, here you go:

-Thoughts?

The Oscar Circuit gets into animation today...

...with a look at the Best Animated Film Short category. Check it out here and let us know how you're liking the series!

A Poster and a Trailer for the Forgetting Sarah Marshall spinoff 'Get Him to the Greek'

-Thoughts?

Behold the Official Oscar Poster!

Thoughts?

Check out our interview with Geoffrey Fletcher, along with a new Oscar Circuit article and more!

Indeed, the writer of Precious was gracious enough to take some time and let us interview him. To listen to Geoffrey Fletcher, go here and let us know what you think!
We've got a new Oscar Circuit article for everyone, this one addressing the Cinematography category. It can be found here, so check it out and be prepared for more to come.
Of note is also an update to the Best Animated Feature predictions. That's here, so take a gander and leave us some feedback.
Last, but not least, we have the last days of ACCA 2009 voting. Go here to make sure your voice is heard!
-Thoughts on the interview, article, prediction, and ACCA voting?

10 Best Picture nominees is here to stay...

...at least for now, according to this talk with the President of the Academy. The story can be found here, but this is the highlight:

It should come as no surprise given how generally well-received the Best Picture lineup has been, but the move to 10 nominees will likely continue for another year, Academy president Tom Sherak said on Wednesday. Some changes, he added, might be made in an attempt to broaden the field.

Speaking in his office after the morning mailing of final Oscar ballots, the first-term AMPAS president said that the Academy was happy with the results of the expanded field … for now.

“I don’t know if it’s a success yet,” he said. “But so far, yes, we’re happy. I don’t think there’s any question about that. So far. And I expect we’ll do it for another year.”

He laughed. “Some people have said, ‘Well, they got lucky.’ I love that comment. In fact, the voters gave us everything we were hoping for when we made the change, except a foreign film or a documentary.”

On that count, Sherak says he’s determined to find a way to get those films into the Best Picture race, and to increase their visibility.

“There are things in the works to address that,” he said. “I don’t know how much I can achieve, but I’m going to keep working on it.”

One key to the Oscar show, he said, is getting viewers “invested in these movies – the big ones and the little ones. So how do you get something from Peru into Des Moines? We have to work on that.”

-Thoughts?

The Historical Circuit continues to grow, and would you like to debate us?

Yes, as we seek to review older films from before the age of the internet, we've introduced the Historical Circuit. The films we've tackled so far can be found here, but if you have any movies you'd like to see us review, be sure to let us know!
Also, keep sending in your Open Circuit applications (found here), as we're prepared to take on all comers, as the saying goes. We look forward to hearing from everone.
-Any suggestions for the Historical Circuit? Anyone looking forward to debating one of us?

Speaking of 'Batman', is Christopher Nolan involved in both a new bat-flick AND a new 'Superman' movie?

Well, yes, according to reports, though he's only "god-fathering" the Man of Steel flick. Nikki Finke and Mike Fleming have a story about this here, but this is a taste:

Warner Bros is trying to ready its DC Comics stalwart Superman to soar again on the Big Screen, and the studio has turned to Chris Nolan to mentor development of the movie. Our insiders say that the brains behind rebooted Batman has been asked to play a "godfather" role and ensure The Man Of Steel gets off the ground after a 3 1/2-year hiatus. Nolan's leadership of the project can set it in the right direction with the critics and the fans, not to mention at the box office. Besides, Nolan is considered something of a god at Warner Bros and has a strong relationship with the studio after the success of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Though he wasn’t obligated to do so, he gave the studio first crack at his spec script Inception, and Warner Bros was able to buy it before other studios even got a sniff. While Nolan completes that Leonardo DiCaprio-starrer for a July 16th release, he's also hatched an idea for Warner Bros' third Batman installment. Now his brother and frequent collaborator Jonathan "Jonah" Nolan, and David Goyer who co-wrote Batman Begins and penned the story for The Dark Knight, are off scripting it.

-Thoughts on Nolan's superhero plate?

Fan Made "Dark Knight" Sequel Posters

The Oscar Circuit is still going strong, with Best Supporting Actress the latest addition!

Indeed, we're continuing this long running series with a look at Best Supporting Actress here. Be sure to keep checking this out as we'll be updating this series daily.
Clayton has also done an update to the Best Adapted and Best Original Screenplay predictions. Both are found here, so look those over and let us know what you think!
-Thoughts on the Oscar Circuit article and new predictions?

The 2009 Black List is fully revealed!

The annual list of the best unproduced screenplays in the business hit a little while back, and now I bring it to you. The full list can be found here, and some films are already in production (like 'The Social Network', and a few others), but here's a bunch that have my eye:

The Muppet Man, The Voices, The Day Before, Mixtape, Book Smart, Betty's Ready, Take This Waltz, The Trade, Jimi, Smile Relax Attack, Good Looking, The Blind Rage of Peacoat Miller, Allies with Benefits, The Hand Job, Swingles, and The Spectacular Now.

-Which are you looking forward to?