New Movies

Rush Hour 3
Budget: $140 million
Theatres: 3,778

Stardust
Budget: $70 million
Theatres: 2,540

Daddy Day Care
Budget: N/A
Theatres: 2,330

Skinwalkers
Budget:N/A
Theatres: 773

source: Box Office Mojo

Pretty much, there's only two real contenders, and thats Rush Hour 3 and Stardust. The second Rush Hour pulled in $67+ million when it opened six years ago. That was actually the highest debut for an August release for its time, and the record was only beat last weekend by the Bourne Ultimatum, which took in $69.3 million. The budget was seriously inflated this time by the pricey deals from Tucker and Chan. Chris Tucker, who hasn't even taken a job since the last one, got a damn lucrative $20 million upfront check... on top of 20% of the movies profits, (Chan got similar but slightly less, and director Brett Ratnor got a pretty slick $7.5 million paper as well). Rush Hour 2 pulled in $226 million in the US so even if the second one doesn't match it, (which I dont really think it will), it'll still pull in enough to cover the costs. Stardust on the other hand, has a tougher road. It's been tracking decently, but its a tough sell. Its a modern day Princess Bride but basically looks pussier than a Disney cartoon. Its garnering solid reviews, but will definitely get overshadowed by Rush Hour and the second weekend of Bourne. Daddy Day Care was directed by Fred Savage from the Wonder Years (go figure) and has already had a shitty debut on Wednesday, pulling in $0.77 million, so the weekend prospects look pretty grim. As for Skinwalkers, the release has already been delayed from June to more recently July 27th. With the recent spat of crappy horror/thrillers (Captivity, I Know Who Killed Me) already tanking harder than Barry Bonds' credibility (sorry, I love him but I had to), don't look for Skinwalkers to do too much. Have you even heard of it? 'Swat I thought.
On the independent front, Rosario Dawson's got "Descent" opening. Its about her getting raped and getting all pissed off about it afterwards. Yea, I can see her pulling that off. But she'll probably ugly it up a bit for it, so personally, my money's gonna wait for Sin City 2 when that leather chapped ass is back on the big screen. That's what I'm talkin about Rosario! Get it done!