Comedy is charging the box office, with Land of the Lost hoping a mix of adventure and laughs will pop Up’s balloon and rise to the top of the heap.
The Brad Silberling (10 Items or Less) directed Universal feature, which stars Will Ferell and revives the classic 1970s Sid and Marty Krofft TV series, opens at more than 3,300 theaters. Both a celebration and parody of the beloved TV series, the film uses heavy doses of VFX instead of the puppetry and stop-motion animation seen in the original series.
Aiming at the older crowd is The Hangover. The Warner Bros. comedy, directed by Old School‘s Todd Phillips, opens in more than 3,200 theaters this weekend and is hoping to wake up to box office results Monday that won’t be embarrassing.
Also out this weekend is My Life in Ruins, a comedy from Fox Searchlight playing at about 1,100 theaters.
All three films join a crowded field lead by Disney-Pixar’s Up, which scored more than $68 million in its opening last weekend and should do well again this weekend. Animated releases this year have shown real legs at the box office, with Coraline and Monsters vs. Aliens doing strong business for many weeks after their openings.
Also expected to do well this weekend are Terminator Salvation, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Drag Me to Hell, Star Trek, Angels & Demons, Dance Flick and the fading X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
