“Monsters University” opens at No.1 in the world

By: Josh Abraham

Monsters University opens at No.1 in the world with a weekend estimated gross of $136.5 million from 36 markets. Man of Steel is the No.1 film internationally with an estimated weekend of $89.0 million, worldwide weekend of $130.2 million from 53 markets and a new worldwide cume of $398.3 million.

World War Z opens to $111.8 million from 26 markets for the third film producing over $100 million this weekend at the worldwide box office.

The top-12 domestic weekend box office estimates listed in descending order, per data collected as of Sunday, June 23, 2013 are below.

Monsters University – Disney – $82.0M
World War Z – Paramount – $66.0M
Man Of Steel – Warner Bros. – $41.2M
This Is The End – Sony – $13.0M
Now You See Me – Lionsgate – $7.9M
Fast & Furious 6 – Universal – $4.7M
Internship, The – 20th Century Fox – $3.4M
Purge, The – Universal – $3.4M
Star Trek Into Darkness – Paramount – $3.0M
Iron Man 3 – Disney – $2.2M
Bling Ring, The – A24 Films – $2.0M
Epic – 20th Century Fox – $1.7M

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James Gandolfini dead at 51: Actor's sister arrives in Rome as autopsy confirms heart attack killed 'Sopranos' star

The Emmy-award winner and HBO star died of a heart attack while in Rome with his 13-year-old son. Family hopes to bring Gandolfini's body home by Wednesday with a funeral to follow by Saturday.

BY JOSEPHINE MCKENNA IN ROME AND LARRY MCSHANE / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS.

An autopsy found Emmy-winning James Gandolfini died of a sudden heart attack inside a Rome hotel room - with no signs of drug or alcohol abuse, a family friend said Friday.

The results were made public as hotel officials angrily denounced published reports that the star of "The Sopranos" binged on booze and food before his shocking death.

Family friend Michael Kobold, at a Rome news conference, said the autopsy determined Gandolfini was killed by a heart attack during a father-son getaway in Italy.

According to Kobold, the Gandolfini family was working with the Italian government in an effort to quickly return the remains to the United States. His body was released to an Italian funeral home.

JASON LAVERIS/FILMMAGIC

James Gandolfini attended the Hollywood premiere of ‘Zero Dark Thirty,’ his second-to-last film.

Though the process can take up to 10 days, the Gandolfini family hoped to bring his body home by next Wednesday with a New York funeral to follow by Saturday, June 29, at the latest, Kobold said.

There was no evidence of drug use, alcohol abuse or foul play in the hulking TV mob boss' death, the Gandolfini pal said. The acclaimed actor was found by his 13-year-old son.

ERNESTO RUSCIO/GETTY IMAGES

The 51-year-old actor's body was taken to the Umberto Hospital morgue.

"There's nothing out of the ordinary," said Kobold. "It was a heart attack. It was a natural cause. There was no foul play, no substance abuse. None of that."

Kobold, asked specifically if the 260-pound Gandolfini had a history of heart trouble, said his friend was healthy.

MIKE STOBE/GETTY IMAGES

The New York Yankees have a moment of silence for actor James Gandolfini on Thursday at Yankee Stadium.

Gandolfini arrived Tuesday with his son Michael, and the pair "had a wonderful day" before the fatal cardiac incident, Kobold said.

"James came here on vacation, meeting his family," said Kobold. "He had a wonderful day - he visited the Vatican, he had dinner at the hotel with his son, awaiting the arrival of his sister."

A second news conference by officials at the Hotel Exedra was "expressly held to completely deny what some newspapers wrote about what he ate and drank," said a spokeswoman.

Gandolfini's family "completely denies everything" about reports regarding his meal at an outdoor table in the historic Trastevere neighborhood, the spokeswoman said.

A manager at the restaurant Sabatini's told the Daily News that Gandolfini arrived with his son for a low-key evening overlooking the stunning piazza.

"They were very quiet," said manager Roberto Alessandrelli. "They ate very moderately. It was a hot night, so there was even less reason to eat a great deal."

SPLASH NEWS/SPLASH NEWS

Family members and staff answer questions about James Gandolfini, who died of cardiac arrest at age 51, the morgue.

Gandolfini enjoyed one drink and a glass of red wine before sharing a plate of prosciutto and melon with his son Michael, he said. Each then ordered a pasta dish.

Gandolfini's grief-stricken sister arrived Friday in Rome to formally identify the body of the Emmy-winning actor.

CRAIG BLANKENHORN /AP

James Gandolfini, from left, Steven Van Zandt and Tony Sirico are seen during the final season of the hit HBO show 'The Sopranos' in 2007.

Leta Gandolfini was escorted to the Umberto Hospital morgue where the 51-year-old was taken after his shocking and sudden death Wednesday night.

Doctors fought desperately to revive the actor for 40 minutes before he was declared dead.

lmcshane@nydailynews.com

‘World War Z’ Zombies Begin Global Battle With ‘Man Of Steel’; But Pixar’s ‘Monsters University’ Should Open Huge #1 Domestic

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief June 21, 2013inShare

FRIDAY 11 AM, 2ND UPDATE: Disney/Pixar’s 3D toon prequel Monsters University opened with a solid $2.6M for Thursday’s late shows starting at 8 PM. “For a family film, we think we’re off to a really great start,” the studio tells me. This weekend Monsters University is opening in 35 territories, though only 6 are key markets (Germany, Australia, Russia, Mexico, Spain, Brazil). Also last night, at the same time that Paramount’s World War Z co-financed with Skydance Productions was benefiting from airing 2 spots during the Miami-San Antonio NBA final to promote today’s official opening, it grossed $3.6M in 2,600 screens for 8 PM previews and midnight shows. Brad Pitt’s Plan B zombie pic about an epic epidemic based on Max Brooks’ plague novel also started rolling day and date Thursday into 25 countries or 30% of the international market Thursday. First grosses came in and “look great”, according to Paramount.

Australia opened with $1.1M (exactly what Inception did) and Korea with $1.5M (Inception did $941K). Argentina grossed $710K on their holiday for the 3rd best opening Thursday ever in that market. Hong Kong did $350K. The studio said there were strong openings in some of the other smaller markets as well, for a total international cume of $5.7M Thursday which comps well with Inception‘s $3.6M for the same territories. Here and overseas, World War Z will be in direct competition with Warner Bros’ and Legendary Pictures’ Man Of Steel which going into today was still the big #1 leader in the worldwide marketplace. Man Of Steel for a probable $50M-$55M on its second weekend. And newcomer Monsters University is tracking even bigger than Cars and outselling Brave online - and could pull $60M-$75M this weekend. The big question mark is all that bad buzz which World War Z endured for six months and how much it will affect filmgoers. Paramount is quick to acknowledge that bad-mouthing has created low expectations and is projecting only mid-$40sM this weekend. But Fandango saw a surge in online ticket sales for World War Z Thursday and as of 1:30 PM it was outselling Superman. Paramount executives point out that there has never been a 3-day weekend with 3 different movies doing $50+M at the domestic box office. And they claim statistics show that only one original movie a year opens at $50M. (“Franchises open bigger but originals play to better multiples as people start discovering them,” one exec tells me.)

FRIDAY 4 PM UPDATE: World War Z and Monsters University now open in the U.S. and Canada after Thursday’s limited run with 8 PM late shows but into wide release Friday. Monsters Inc was originally released on November 2, 2001, and wound up nominated for 4 Oscars: Best Animated Feature Film, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, and Best Original Song “If I Didn’t Have You” which won the Academy Award. This prequel hits theaters nearly 12 years later and is set during Mike’s and Sulley’s college years. This is the 14th Pixar feature release and inevitably it will debut #1 since the studio already is 13 for 13 #1 openings. The G-rated pic opens wide in 4,004 theaters on Friday. Meanwhile, Paramount’s focus for World War Z was on the Friday debut because the studio suspected there’d be an NBA Finals Game 7, and, obviously, there was. That allowed Paramount to air two spots during what was one of the most watched series’ ends in pro basketball history. Paramount keeps using Inception as a good but inexact comp for World War Z because, although the two movies are both originals and summer sci-fi tentpoles, only World War Z was filmed in 3D. With those higher ticket prices, more pressure is on the zombie pic to do better at the domestic box office than Inception‘s $62.7M opening in July 2010. Christopher Nolan’s Inception did nearly a 5x multiple helped by the helmer’s Batman trilogy mega-success. Interesting, because Brad Pitt outbid Leonardo DiCaprio for the movie rights to World War Z and then chose Marc Forster to direct it. But Forster is no Nolan. Still, with all kids out of school, and many adults starting vacations, and July 4th weekend fast approaching, it’s likely the movie will do solidly for several weeks but nowhere near a breakout blockbuster. ”People are getting excited by the movie now that we have it to show,” a Paramount exec explains. With good early reviews and vastly improved tracking, World War Z just might (emphasis on the word might) overperform despite stiff competition.

Frankly, I’ve never found zombies scary – they’re slow, so just outrun them, right? - although this pic has fast-moving zombies who swarm. But it’s not like lethal lasers are leaping out of their eyes. And these are PG-13 zombies who don’t look much different from the cable TV zombies on AMC’s Walking Dead. These also are expensive zombies. Much has been made of the film’s mega-cost: between $220M-$230M brought down by tax incentives to about $200M, or so the studio claims. Vanity Fair which typically ignores Hollywood moviemaking even did a long feature article about the pic’s budget, plot, and production problems, including reshoots and four writers: J. Michael Straczynski, Matthew Michael Carnahan, Damon Lindelof, and Drew Goddard. Which all prompted Time film critic Richard Corliss to grouse this week, “So they spent a bundle. Doesn’t matter; it’s not your money. Your ticket to this movie, unless you see the 3D version, costs the same as one for a pinchpenny indie film.” Earth to Corliss: Paramount is part of publicly traded Viacom, and shareholders need to know if their money was wasted on a box office bomb so they can figure out which bums to blame for the almost certainty that this film is never going to earn out. But it won’t be a total write-off like John Carter or Battleship thanks to steps that Brad Pitt and Paramount took to try and fix the movie because it came out.

According to MovieTickets.com, domestic box office advance ticket sales for Man Of Steel accounted for nearly 33% of total daily transactions for Wednesday with Monsters University close behind with 28.2% and World War Z with 14.6%. But Fandango reports those numbers changing day by day: World War Z rose to 25% of sales, and Man Of Steel fell to 19%. In fact, Fandango said WWZ is selling 175% more tickets than Tom Cruise’s Oblivion at this same point in the release cycle. Monsters University was selling 50% more tickets than Brave at the same point in the sales cycle and accounted for 44% of Thursday’s ticket sales.

Justin Bieber Involved In Hollywood Traffic Accident, Paparazzo Injured

June 18, 2013 12:54 PM

HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA.com) — Pop singer Justin Bieber was reportedly involved in a collision that left a paparazzo injured just before midnight Monday.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, a traffic collision occurred outside of the Laugh Factory at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Crescent Heights in Hollywood.

The incident was caught on tape, which was viewed by CBS2′s Amber Lee.

According to Lee, the footage shows Bieber behind the wheel of his white Ferrari, surrounded by paparazzi, as he tries to leave the comedy club.

The singer then motions for photographers to move so he can leave and he reportedly pins a paparazzo between his Ferrari and a parked car, TMZ reported.

Bieber then left the scene, a paparazzo told Lee.

The photographer involved in the crash was treated at a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries to his left leg.

Bieber was questioned by police and cleared around 5 a.m., TMZ’s Mike Walters told KNX 1070.

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“He didn’t know he hit anybody, and once when cops were able to see the video . . . you can clearly see that this wasn’t one of the ones where a photographer is clearly hit,” Walters said.

‘Man Of Steel’ Soars With High-Flying $42.5M-$47.5M Today And $120M-$132M Domestic Cume Through Sunday; Begins Global Release With Asian Records

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Friday June 14, 2013 @ 1:11am PDT

Tags: Box Office, Man of Steel, This Is The End

FRIDAY 1 PM, 2ND UPDATE: “We are having a big day!” a Warner Bros exec just gushed to me. “Movie’s working!” exulted another exec at the studio. No official numbers yet. But my sources say that, based on matinee trends, Man Of Steel (4,207 theaters with 3D in 3,357 venues) is looking like $42.5M to $47.5M today,

plus however the studio accounts for the $9M from Friday midnights and the $12M of corporate/Wal-Mart sales screenings from Thursday 7 PM shows. My sources have 3-day weekend estimates ranging from $114M to $120M with 4-day cumes ranging from $126M to $132M. ”It’s way behind Iron Man 3 but way ahead ofSuperman Returns,” a rival studio exec tells me. (Iron Man 3 kicked off Summer 2013 with a $174.1M opening weekend which ranked 2nd all-time behind last year’s The Avengers with $207.4M) That wildly overperforms Man Of Steel‘s pre-release tracking which has ranged from Warner Bros’ lowball $80sM aimed a managing expectations to rival studio projections around $95M-$100M. The only other movie in the North American marketplace in wide release, Sony/Columbia Pictures’ This Is The End (3,055 theaters) which opened Wednesday as a counter-programming apocalyptic comedy is looking like $7M for Friday, $18.2M for the 3-day weekend, and $30M for the 5-day cume. Refined numbers later.

FRIDAY 7 AM UPDATE: Not even torrential downpours in NYC could dampen enthusiastic crowds forming long lines for Thursday late shows. Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures just announced its hotly anticipated Man Of Steel opened with a midnight show of $9 million. Combined with $12M from a corporate group sale screening program at 7 PM, this third Superman franchise begins its North American run with a cume of $21M. “Off to a flying start!!!” A studio exec gushed to me just now. The number ranks 7th among late show records, behind only theHarry Potter and Twilight franchises, but ahead of The Hunger Games. It’s also the all-time highest superhero late show record, surpassing The Avengers’remarkable $18.7M and The Dark Knight‘s $18.5M. The more equal comparison would be June 2005′s Batman Begins which was the first of the trilogy and grossed $1.6M at midnight while June 2006′s Superman Returns reboot made $4.9M and July 2012′s The Amazing Spider-Man redo earned $7.5M. Of course, any such record must come with an asterisk because Hollywood studios recently have interpreted ‘midnights’ as beginning at 7 PM Thursday through midnight and sometimes into early dawn. So that prevents any accurate movie-to-movie direct comparison of late show grosses. IMAX hauled in $1.6M domestic from Man Of Steel late shows from 327 North American locations.

This third Superman franchise goes wide today in a whopping 4,207 locations which is the 2nd widest release ever for a non-sequel: 850 are 2D only, and the remaining venues will play in 3D with a 2D component. Tracking has ranged from Warner Bros’ lowball $80sM aimed a managing expectations to rival studio projections around $95M-$100M. According to both Fandango and MovieTickets.com, domestic advance ticket sales accounted for over 85% of total daily transactions Thursday and today. (“That percentage would have been higher if it weren’t for This Is The End doing 7% of sales today,” says Fandango’s Harry Medved.) Still, even with a longish running time of two hours and 23 minutes, the Chris Nolan-Zack Snyder-David S. Goyer-Henry Cavill tentpole Man Of Steel could pack an unexpectedly stronger punch because of the 3D premium and immense wannasee. It’s almost guaranteed to set a new opening weekend record for the month of June. Superman’s last big screen outing was Superman Returns with a very mediocre five-day opening of $84.6M that stopped Warner Bros from ordering up a sequel. But it scored higher positive reviews of 75% on Rotten Tomatoes than Man Of Steel‘s surprisingly middling 58% seven years later. Then again, this is a critics-proof pic after it took Christopher Nolan’s involvement to make Superman cool again (finally) even though it’s a feel-good movie where the man of steel must save the day against Michael Shannon’s villainous General Zod. And the studio’s masterful marketing campaign filled with mystery (that first teaser barely featured the Metropolis Marvel) really caught the imagination of anyone ever enamored of one of the most popular DC Comics characters ever.

Overseas, my sources tell me records are already breaking around from Asia though Korea (see poster) hasn’t reported grosses yet. Taiwan opened on Wednesday and Man Of Steel grossed a huge NT$23,773,310 ($794,742) nationwide for the all-time highest opening day for any Warner Bros film and the buggest opening day for Chris Nolan. The Philippines opened the film on its Independence Day, also Wednesday, to record results. The film became the biggest opening day ever with P69,284,858 ($1,657,532) comprising 347,626 admissions from 466 screens nationwide. That made Man Of Steel #1 with over 90% market share. In all, Superman is opening in 24 international markets day and date with North America, including 3 Top Ten countries: UK, Korea, and Mexico. Warner Bros will launch an additional 26 markets on the second weekend, including China, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and Spain. Ultimately, the film will be on more than 21,000 screens abroad.

Meanwhile, Fandango surveyed more than 1,000 Man Of Steel ticket-buyers and found that 88% are fans of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight franchise, 83% said the supporting cast of Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, and Michael Shannon increased their interest in seeing the movie, 81% claimed the darker interpretation of Superman made them more interested in buying a ticket, 75% cannot wait to see the villain General Zod, 72% are fans of director Zack Snyder’s previous films (300,Watchmen), 69% want to see the lead played by Henry Cavill and not by an established box office superstar. Much more to come all weekend. Counter-programming the Man Of Steel juggernaut this weekend is Sony/Columbia Pictures’ raunchy apocalyptic comedy This Is The End. It received a ‘B+’ CinemaScore from audiences and 82% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and a #1 reception Wednesday. With a dearth of both ‘R’-rated movies or well-received laughers in the marketplace, pic made $7.8M from 3,055 theaters including $2.2M from Tuesday late shows and Wednesday midnights. Projections are for at least mid-$30sM over the next 5 days - which is about the same dollar figure as its $32M negative cost. Read more here.