Box Office: Angelina Jolie’s ‘Maleficent’ Making Magic With $70 million Plus U.S. Opening
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- Published on Sunday, 01 June 2014 09:06
- Written by Variety
Angelina Jolie’s got the box office magic with “Maleficent,” with early Friday forecasts pointing to a U.S. opening weekend that could wind up above $70 million.Disney’s assiduously marketed fantasy epic is on track to take in about $23 million to $26 million on Friday, including a solid $4.2 million from Thursday evening showings. Friday’s weekend projections for “Maleficent” ranged from the low $60 millions to the low $70 millions.Friday business appeared to be significantly more robust than trackers had expected, which had led to recent forecasts in the $60 million range. The live-action retelling of the Sleeping Beauty story will become the highest opening weekend for Jolie, easily topping the $50.9 million launch frame for 2008′s “Wanted.” Disney’s marketing push for “Maleficent,” which carries a $180 million pricetag, stresses her portrayal of a supernatural villain — albeit one with a human side. The studio saw a similarly strong performance last year with another fantasy-actioner, “Oz the Great and Powerful,” which opened with $79.1 million domestically on its way to a solid $234.9 million at the domestic box office.Matinee business for “Maleficent” was in line with the performance of “Oz,” which debuted in March 2013, when far fewer children were out of school. Reviews for “Maleficent” have been mixed, with a 49% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.Friday’s forecasts were less sunny for Seth McFarlane in his first live-action starring role in “A Million Ways to Die in the West.” Universal’s R-rated Western comedy was heading for about $7 million to $9 million on Friday, leading to a weekend in the $20 million to $22 million range.
That’s less than half of the $49 million opening for “Neighbors,” another Universal comedy aimed at adults. “Neighbors” has grossed an impressive $120 million in its first three weeks.McFarlane stunned Hollywood in 2012 with “Ted,” which opened domestically with $54.4 million on its way to a $218.8 million domestic cume and took in another $331 million overseas.Reviewers have not been kind to “A Million Ways,” with a 34% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.Fox’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past” showed plenty of punch at the start of its second weekend with Friday’s number in the $10 million to $12 million range on its eighth day in U.S. theaters after grossing $129 million in its first week.The mutant sequel, which earned an A CinemaScore rating, looks likely to finish the weekend with $35 million-$38 million — representing a decline of about 55% to 60% from the three-day launch of $91 million.That decline is at the low end of “X-Men” films in the series, which have dropped from 53% to nearly 70% in their second weekends.The third weekend of “Godzilla” will finish fourth with about $13 million after devouring $162 million in its first two weeks.
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Angelina confirms talks for Cleopatra movie – but might she be tempted to retire after?
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- Published on Sunday, 01 June 2014 09:00
- Written by Metro
Angelina Jolie has revealed she has been in talks to star in a film about the life of Cleopatra.The Maleficent star said she has been meeting with different directors to come up with ideas for the film.While the project is coming together, Jolie admitted that such a huge role would require a lot of preparation.She told Edith Bowman on Radio 5 live: ‘We’ve been working on it. There’s been lots of different ideas of directors and lots of different discussions. The script has been written by Eric Roth, who is a dear friend and a brilliant writer.’She suggested that playing Cleopatra would be such a huge role that she might be tempted not to carry on acting.‘She’s complicated, it’s complicated to get this one right. I think we’re getting there. It’s getting close. I imagine the preparation for it is going to be big.’She went on: ‘It’s one of those that you think maybe that’s the one you put everything into and that’s where you end it, that’s where you finish – in a great way! ‘What could you do beyond that one?’ The actress recently hinted that her acting career will be taking a back seat in the near future.Angelina revealed that she will focus on her humanitarian work with the United Nations and Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative; and directing instead.‘I’ve had a wonderful career and I’m very happy to have had all the opportunities to tell stories and work for as long as I have’ she said.‘I’m sure there will be more films but I am happy I am able to be selective and have fun with characters like this but I would like to focus on writing and directing and above all I would like to focus more on my work with the UN and PSVI.’
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Angelina Jolie: Maddox Has a Girlfriend
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- Published on Friday, 30 May 2014 08:15
- Written by Celebrity Babies
It’s been a while since we’ve seen the Jolie-Pitt brood. So imagine our glee when they all showed up for the premiere of Angelina Jolie‘s new film, Maleficent, Wednesday evening.Held at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles, the kid-friendly event was perfect for family date night.To complement their parents’s dark attire, Maddox, 12½, Pax, 10, Shiloh, 8, and Knox, 5½, wore suit jackets and vests paired with trousers in hues of gray, khaki and navy. On the other hand, Zahara, 9, went for a more fun look – sporty gold and black tank, black velvet leggings, gold sneakers and face paint!.The only person missing? Brad and Angelina‘s little girl Vivienne, 5½, who actually plays a young Aurora in the movie.We can imagine it takes a lot to wrangle six kids, so we’ll take any Jolie-Pitt family sighting we can get it, especially if it means seeing how much Jolie’s first child, Maddox, has grown up.According to the actress, the almost 13-year-old already has a girlfriend. “She’s great,” she told ET News. “I won’t embarrass him. She’s lovely. She lives in England. She’s very cool.”So how is the tween managing his long distance relationship? “We go there as often as possible. It’s really, really sweet. She’s a great lady, so I’m lucky. So far, we’re doing good.”
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Maddox Jolie-Pitt Looks Very Dapper as He Supports Mom Angelina Jolie at 'Maleficent' Premiere!
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- Published on Friday, 30 May 2014 03:31
- Written by Just Jared
Maddox Jolie-Pitt looks so so dapper as he hits the red carpet at the premiere of his mom Angelina Jolie‘s film Maleficent held at the El Capitan Theatre on Wednesday (May 28) in Hollywood.The 12-year-old son of Angelina and Brad Pitt was also joined on the red carpet by his grandfather Jon Voight and actor James Haven.Angelina and Brad also brought four of their other kiddos including sons Pax, 10 and Knox, 5, and their daughters Zahara, 9, and Shiloh, 7. Absent from the premiere was Vivienne, 5, who has a small role in the film. See the pic of the family on Us Weekly.
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Angelina Jolie is Brad Pitt's 'Maleficent' at Hollywood Premiere!
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- Published on Thursday, 29 May 2014 10:52
- Written by Just Jared
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt hold hands while arriving at premiere of her new flick Maleficent held at the El Capitan Theatre on Wednesday (May 28) in Hollywood. A few weeks ago, the 38-year-old actress sported a black dress while supporting the 50-year-old actor at his 2014 Make It Right Foundation Gala in New Orleans, La. “I want them to do it for fun only, and when they get older, if they decide to be actors, I would just ask that that’s not the center of their lives,” Angie recently shared to ABC about her kids going into acting. “That’s an aspect but they are involved in many other things, because I don’t think it’s a healthy focus as the center of your life.” FYI: Angelina is wearing Versace and Brad is wearing Gucci.
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