There has been a major development within SAG tonight that makes a strike even less likely than ever. DHD readers know that back in December, I urged SAG to bypass a strike authorization altogether and place itself in an even stronger negotiating position by following a less risky course of action: send out the AMPTP's June 30th contract proposal and let the members decide to ratify it or not by the necessary 50+% threshold. (See my previous, DHD To SAG: Forget Strike Authorization Ballot! Vote On AMPTP Contract Proposal.)

Well, imagine my surprise when, after Monday's and Tuesday's 30.5-hour marathon SAG National Board meeting, sources began telling me that a movement was underway to do the above. I waited to post about this significantly new development to see if the idea took hold. Well, it has.

Now SAG National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator Doug Allen has announced to the National Board and Alternates that he will spend the next days pushing for this contract vote by the membership instead of the strike authorization ballot. "I will convene an Officers’ call this week to discuss this suggestion and how it might be considered and implemented. I encourage all board members to discuss these issues with the Guild officers or with me in advance of the call," Allen wrote. (See below.)

I view this as great news for the entertainment industry because it introduces a new dynamic when SAG's solidarity is splitting down the middle over anything with the word "strike" on it. (And once again the trades and Bloomberg got it wrong by claiming SAG President Alan Rosenberg would now keep pushing for the strike authorization vote...).

I suggested that SAG's National Board could refuse to offer a recommendation one way or the other about the AMPTP deal as a way to allow for the most democratic vote possible. (Under normal circumstances, the negotiating committee would recommend the contract to the National Board, which would then stamp it with an endorsement. I'd checked the SAG rules, and nothing there prevents the contract from being sent out "neutrally" for ratification now.) But Allen is proposing that the offer be sent out with Pro and Con statements from National Board members and that otherwise the Guild would remain neutral during any member debate regarding ratification. Sounds good.

But here's the kick in the head: Allen proposed all of the above inside that marathon National Board meeting Monday and Tuesday. And for some reason, not everybody wanted it. In fact, my sources tell me that the National Board members who were overwhelmingly against it belonged to the Unite For Strength (U4S) and New York Regional camps who are on the same side of most issues because of their common loathing of the Membership First faction. I thought U4S and NY Regional saw themselves as "moderates" (at least that's how the Hollywood trades and LA Times keep referring to them, and to Membership First as "militants"). But, tell me, how is it a moderate position to want to keep a Strike Authorization Ballot on the table with all that it implies? And how is it a militant position to want to send out the June 30th contract proposal to the membership for a vote when that's what the AMPTP has been asking SAG to do for months and months?

Therefore, I must ask whether the same factions of SAG National Board members and alternates who sought to throw out the agreed-upon meeting agenda and SAG's constitutional rules on Monday and Tuesday in order to focus solely on their anti-Membership First feud, are now putting their own agenda ahead of what's best for all SAG members and for all showbiz? "Doug offered them this compromise and they said 'No, because we don't trust you'. That's it. No further discussion. Now they are in a bind," one of my insiders explains. "Because if they don't take this offer seriously, they will be the people who left the Strike Authorization on the table. But if they agree and Doug at el were successful in getting the AMPTP or the CEOs to sweeten the deal and maybe the membership to ratify it, then MF and Doug are heroes. And that's political suicide for U4S/NY."

I've said all along no matter if it was SAG vs AFTRA, or MF vs U4S, or Hollywood Division vs New York Division: the focus by the big actors union's entire leadership should be on the contract, not on actor vs actor disputes. (Nor on Doug Allen. I recall how, during the WGA strike, the trades and the LA Times also targeted and villified that guild's "outsider" -- chief negotiator Dave Young who came out of the garment business' union organizing -- as the root cause of everything that was wrong. Only to later praise Young for his role in helping manuever the strike's end game. In fact, the moguls who've sat down with Allen tell me he seems "calm and reasonable". )

So it's time for SAG members to hold ALL their leadership's feet to the fire: Demand that your guild's National Board table the Strike Authorization Ballot. Demand that you get to vote on the AMPTP contract now. 

Allen proposes that, before a membership ratification vote, SAG "meet immediately with the AMPTP to determine to what extent, if any, they are willing to improve their last offer, to maximize its chances for ratification". Heck, maybe pigs will fly and sanity will prevail and the Hollywood CEOs will have the good sense to order the AMPTP to show good faith and make the current contract proposal that more likely to pass now (as opposed to months later). Everyone knows on both sides that certain demands will be dropped at the 11th hour. This means tweaking French hours and force majeure and DVD bumps and some other impossible-to-get issues which we all know the two sides were planning to do anyway when a vote got closer. (Or was the plan by the AMPTP's labor lawyers all along to make a big show of only giving in to the so-called "moderates" once they came into power in order to make them look all that much better compared to the "militants"? Nice to know that SAG's recent National Board meetings are following the AMPTP's script to perfection.) So simply do it now rather than later. Hasn't the AMPTP punished SAG's leadership enough already without SAG's leadership punishing itself and its members?

I must remind SAG members that the AMPTP presented AFTRA with a virtually complete contract that wound up little changed. But the AMPTP made SAG negotiators start from scratch -- literally -- and negotiate up from the bottom issue by issue, term by term. It was a loathesome tactic. And it's the primary reason why AFTRA's negotiations took just a few weeks, while SAG's bargaining dragged on and on and on... Those are the facts which no amount of spin by Big Media, or the AMPTP, or the anti-guild media can change. 

I'd hate to think that SAG's U4S or NY contingent won't approve sending the contract out for a vote simply because they don't want Membership First to get credit for making the strike threat go away. This isn't about petty considerations like that. This isn't about winning because the whole entertainment community is losing as this uncertainty drags on. The time is now for everybody to stop fighting and open their minds and consider the following: 

If the contract is ratified, then SAG has decided that now in the midst of another Great Depression is not the time to fight. So the guild holds its fire for three years at which time I predict the mother of all strikes by two or more guilds will hit Hollywood. Basically, Big Media is swapping big pain now for much less hurt down the line by betting that their cartel will control even more of New Media by 2011. As for SAG, it's clear that the reality of working under its own contract or AFTRA's will leave most members bitter at having been bullied by a bad economy into a bad deal.

But if the contract is rejected, then the AMPTP and their Big Media bosses would have to realize that this isn't just Alan Rosenberg or Doug Allen or Membership First militants shooting their mouths off about the rotten terms. Instead, SAG members themselves would have said "No" to the deal. It would also send a message to the moguls that leaving these negotiations in the hands of their labor lawyers didn't work. (And Carol Lombardini's "tryout" for Nick Counter's job as AMPTP president was a big fat failure.) The Hollywood CEOs would have to start engaging in backchannel negotiations just like they did during the WGA strike. Then SAG could bargain representing the will of the majority of their members. 

Here is Doug Allen's letter to the Board: 

Subject: Message from Doug Allen, SAG National Executive Director

January 14, 2009

Dear SAG National Board Members and Alternates,

Because the executive session of our recent extraordinary National Board meeting occurred without my presence in the room, I want to directly communicate several points to all board members and alternates.

I began and ended my report to the National Board on January 12 by stating that I have followed and always will follow the directives of the National Board expressed by a unanimous or majority vote. Under my leadership all SAG staff has complied and will comply with those directives as well. I also said that I am by SAG constitution and by employment contract accountable to the board for my performance.

I welcome your review of that performance and respectfully request only that, in the interest of fairness, such review include the opportunity for me to discuss with the board any comments, questions or issues you wish to raise, not in lieu of executive session discussion, but prior to such discussion.

It is unfortunate that the important matters contained in the National Board meeting ag enda were not accomplished at the meeting January 12 and 13. I know that opinions vary sharply on why that happened. From my perspective, to the extent AMPTP positions or actions are the problem, the solution cannot be determined by how intensely you fight among yourselves.

Regarding the TV/Theatrical negotiations, and the sharply divided opinions on the board about how to proceed, I offered the following suggestion to a cross section of Guild leaders during the period of the executive session. I asked that they discuss the suggestion with other board members in attendance. I proposed that the strike authorization referendum be suspended and that management’s offer be put to the membership in a ratification vote. I also proposed that, before that membership ratification vote, we meet immediately with the AMPTP to determine to what extent, if any, they are willing to improve their last offer, to maximize its chances for ratification. I further proposed that the offer then be sent to the members with Pro and Con statements from National Board members and that otherwise the Guild would remain neutral during any member debate regarding ratification. This process will give Screen Actors Guild members the opportunity to formally express themselves on the bargaining issues.

This suggestion was communicated to some, but not all board members in attendance, and apparently was rejected by some who heard it, at least in part, because they believe I could not be “trusted” to implement it. Since I am the one proposing it and since I have never acted contrary to the directives of the National Board, that is not a reasonable objection. In any case, if it is the decision of the National Board to proceed as I have proposed, I assure you that the staff and I will carry out your decision faithfully and diligently.

I will convene an Officers’ call this week to discuss this suggestion and how it might be considered and implemented. I encourage all board members to discuss these issues with the Guild officers or with me in advance of the call.

There are no more important issues before us than the conclusion of the TV/Theatrical Contract negotiations and the initiation of the Commercial Contract negotiations. Super-heated rhetoric through the press will not contribute to our success on behalf of the members. Working together to resolve your differences will.

Doug Allen

SUNDAY AM: The holiday movie season officially opened big this weekend with North American box office grosses up 29% over last year's. Moviegoers once again had a huge appetite for Hollywood animation, even when it's a sequel that broke absolutely no new ground with respect to the genre. So DreamWorks Animation's Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa distributed by Paramount had an even stronger opening than anticipated by movie analysts. It made $17.6 million Friday and $27.6 million Saturday from a very wide release of 4,056 theaters for a $63.5M first weekend including Sunday's estimated take. Yowza! That far exceeds the performance of the 2005 original, which opened to $47.2M for the three-day Memorial Weekend. And it smashes Kung Fu Panda's June 6th-8th three-day weekend take from 4,114 venues of $60.2M that set Dreamworks Animation's all-time non-sequel opening. It also turned out to be the biggest animated opening of the year above the $63.1M of Pixar/Disney's Wall-E. Paramount boasted that this is the fifth $40 million opening it has released in one year -- Cloverfield, Iron Man, Indy 4, Kung Fu Panda, and now this film -- and claimed it was a first for any studio's distribution division. Madagascar 2's success just goes to show that the strategy of making 90-minute toons is shrewd: not only can theaters get in a lot of screenings, but both parents and offspring can sit through anything that short without too much squirming. Once again, my pet theory is proven: that almost any animated film featuring characters with fur does better at the box office. 

Universal released one of those rare R-rated raunchy comedies not made by Judd Apatow and it far exceeded movie analysts' expectations. The studio had projected no more than an $11 million opening for No. 2 Role Models whose tracking showed middling awareness but decent interest with the under-25 set (both males and females followed by older males). Even most rival studios thought the low-cost pic would make low teens. So it's a surprise that Role Models debuted with $6.6 million Friday and $7.5 million Saturday (+14%) for a $19.2M weekend. There's clearly pent-up demand for adult laffers and pairing Seann William Scott and Paul Rudd with director David Wain didn't hurt. (I'm told that it was Rudd who suggested the studio hire Wain.) "We've had success placing R-rated movies against family oriented fare -- American Gangster against Bee Movie, Wanted against Wall-E," a Universal insider told me.

Disney's High School Musical 3: Senior Year ended the weekend No. 3 by adding another $9.2 million for a fresh cume of $75.7M. I wouldn't be surprised if Disney decides to insure Zac Efron's six-pack abs for millions. Universal's Oscar-touted Changeling directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Angelina Jolie came in No. 4 with a $7.2M weekend and new cume of $20.5M. The Weinstein Co's holdover Zach and Miri Makes A Porno was No. 5 adding another $6.5 million weekend for a fresh cume of $20.9M.

As expected, The Weinstein Co/MGM's Soul Men tanked for only 6th despite starring the late Bernie Mac which should have enabled it to overperform with African-American audiences. But it eked out $1.7 million Friday and $2.4 million Saturday from 2,044 theaters for just an estimated $5.6M weekend.

MGM/Sony's Quantum Of Solace was the #1 film in every international territory where it opened this week. Its box office grosses also have been bigger in every territory than Casino Royale, which was Daniel Craig's debut as 007, with 13 countries doubling the 21st Bond pic's earnings. The sequel (No. 22) has now opened in 60 countries on 9,870 screens for a $106.5M weekend and new 10-day cume of $160.3M with the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Spain, and Japan still to go. There should be $200M in the bank by the time Quantum Of Solace debuts in North America Friday. It enjoyed a record-setting debut in the UK, France and Sweden last weekend. Then on Wednesday it had the 2nd biggest opening day ever for a non-Chinese picture in China (behind Spider-Man 3) and scored the 9th biggest opening day ever in The Phillippines, the 4th biggest opening day ever in Indonesia, and 2008's biggest opening day in Belgium. On Thursday, it had India's biggest opening day of 2008 and the second biggest opening day ever for a non-Indian film (behind Spider-Man 3). Over this weekend, Quantum Of Solace scored within the Top 20 openings of all time in 35 territories.

Miramax's Oscar-touted Holocaust drama The Boy In The Striped Pajamas based on John Boyne's book, debuted in 17 theaters of 8 markets with $255K  for the weekend. Lionsgate's Repo! The Genetic Opera, Darren Lynn Bousman's Paris Hilton-Paul Sorvino starrer, opened in 8 theaters for a $51.5K weekend.

Overall, it looks like a big weekend at the box office with total grosses shaping up to approach $145M, +28.8% from last year's $112.5M.

The rest of the Top 10 were holdovers:.

1. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (DreamWorks Animation/Paramount) $63.5M wkd from 4,056 theaters.

2. Role Models (Universal) $19.2M wkd from 2,792 theaters.

3. High School Musical 3: Senior Year (Disney) $9.2M wkd from 3,464 theaters. $75.7M cume.

4. Changeling (Universal) $7.2M wkd from 1,855 theaters. $20.5M cume.

5. Zack And Miri Make A Porno (The Weinstein Co) $6.5M wkd from 2,735 theaters. $20.9M cume.

6. Soul Men (The Weinstein Co/MGM) $5.6 wkd from 2,044 theaters.

7. Saw V (Twisted Picture/Lionsgate) $4.2M wkd from 2,829 theaters. $52.3M cume.

8. The Haunting Of Molly Hartley (Freestyle Releasing) $3.5M wkd from 2,576 theaters. $10.2M cume.

9. The Secret Life Of Bees (Fox Searchlight) $3.1M wkd from 1,481 theaters. $29.9M cume.

10. Eagle Eye (DreamWorks/Paramount) $2.5M wkd from 1,407 theaters. $96.4M cume.

Who cares if Warner Bros just signed a 3-year/first-look deal with Steve Carell? Because everyone in Hollywood knows that Jeff Robinov and Alan Horn have no sense of humor. So they'll waste him in unoriginal mainstream crap. (Don't expect anything similar to The 40 Year Old Virgin. Horn is such a PC dipstick that he won't allow the studio to make low cost/big box office Judd Apatow-type laughers rated R.) And Russell Crowe confirmed this during last night's appearance on Letterman. The actor explained that his soon-to-be-released film Body Of Lies contained "my favorite line I ever delivered in a movie. But it's not in the film. They took it out. I think that Warner Bros executives had an attack of taste."

It occurred during a scene in which Crowe had to ad-lib a conversation with Leonardo DiCaprio about seeing a pic on an airplane flight. But after one take, producer Donald DeLine "ran over and said, 'You can't say that movie you just mentioned. Because it's not a Warner Bros movie. And he gave me a list. And he said, 'While you're ad-libbing, ad-lib from this list of Warner Bros films.' "

So Crowe looked at the titles, and decided to mention a film to which he and DiCaprio had a career connection but also just happened to be one of Robinov's and Horn's biggest bombs of recent years. "I swear to God, I didn't know where this came from," Crowe told Letterman, "but I'm standing there, and Leonardo says, 'How was your flight?' and I said, 'I watched that Poseidon.' And he said 'How was it?' And I said, 'It was like watching a Greek girl get a bikini wax. I had no idea when it was going to end.' "

The un-PC line got a big laugh from The Late Show studio audience. But "that didn't make the taste level of Warner Bros movies," Crowe complained. To which Letterman responded, "I don't know, but that seems to say everything you need to know about watching the Poseidon, doesn't it?"

Warner Bros has now released programming details of TheWB.com that debuts online to the public August 27th as an ad-supported, video-on-demand, interactive and personalized reworked version of the gone but not forgotten network. Sure, there will be some oldie but goodies (like Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Gilmore Girls, Everwood, Veronica Mars, Roswell, One Tree Hill, Smallville), and old Warner Bros-produced shows (like Friends and The OC), or newly acquired axed series (like Angel, Babylon 5, Firefly, In Living Color, The Loop, MADtv) and foreign programming (like an Aussie series about a surfing academy).

But the most interesting aspect of TheWB.com to me, the Hollywood guilds and to Big Media in general has to be Warner Bros' ambitious programming of original series. Tapped are McG, Josh Schwartz, and other TV creators. "A lot of these established guys want to play around in this space where there's no constraints for time and all sorts of great stuff they can do," a Warner Bros insider tells me today. "Some of this will incubate online and possible transition into series stuff. And some of this is literally meant to be short form entertainment."

Until recently, no network really wanted to spend money on scripted content for online. But when Warner Bros announced its digital production arm Studio 2.0 with 25 series, the Warner Bros Television Group prez Bruce Rosenblum made clear that all of that development would cost less than $3 million, equivalent to one episode of Pushing Daisies or any other big budget drama.

But there's also original programming from creators found on YouTube, or participants in the Creative Lab which Warner Bros put on two summers in the row for young people, or through Studio 2.0, to create, write, produce and even star in their own stuff. Needless to say, these people aren't Hollywood guild members.

The success or failure of these made-for-online shows could change the way that the networks conduct TV development. We all know these are really back-door pilots, so the next TV hits could depend on online hits. As TheWb.com's sales pitch says, "The next great network will not be televised." Or perhaps unionized, the way things are going... (Which is why StrikeTV, born during the writers strike, is using guild members to create their online scripted programming and will announce its official launch in a few weeks.)

Here's a sampling of the original content: 

Sorority Forever (premieres September 8): Mystery/drama about college sororities. McG will executive produce, along with Big Fantastic creators/executive producers Douglas Cheney, Chris Hampel, Chris McCaleb and Ryan Wise of the Interet series Prom Queen.

Whatever Hollywood (premieres August 27):  Ellyn Ruschak, Alyssa Ruschak, and Jenny Alden play three wannabe Hollywood stars who make fun and silly short films often featuring their own original music. 

Untitled Josh Schwartz Music Project: Created by Josh Schwartz and executive produced with music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas, this web-exclusive series is set in a fictional Hollywood rock club. The series, from Schwartz’s College Hill Pictures, is written in part by rock critics and musicians alike. 
 
Rich Girl, Poor Girl: Comedic reality show from reality TV exec producer Gary Auerbach about a wealthy Orange County, Calif., girl who swaps her life with a low-income teen from Los Angeles.

Exposed: Through his Wonderland Sound and Vision banner, McG executive produces a thriller about a college student trying to hide his past.  Blake Calhoun and Mike Maden (creators of the Internet series Pink) are co-executive producers for Alternative Fuel, LLC. Calhoun directs from a story and screenplay by Maden.
 
High Drama: Against All Oz: Unscripted series about a high school musical . Created by James Percelay who serves as exec producers along with Paul Doyle and Rich Rosenthal. 
 
Chadam:  Artist Alex Pardee and producer Jason Hall of HDFILMS Inc team up on a 3D animation project based upon Pardee’s character Chadam which already lives on the Internet. The 3D animation is being done by Unreal Engine 3, the leading technology and development framework that powers games like Gears of War and BioShock.

Downers Grove: Birthed during Warner Bros' summer Creative Lab, a bunch of the interns created, wrote, produced and star in this scripted series about a bunch of suburban rowdies.
 
Joni & Susanna:  This series was birthed by Warner's Studio 2.0 and follows the lives of two frenemies Created and starring two unknowns, Joni Lefkowitz and Susanna Fogel and produced by them and Erica Kraus.

Whatever happened to Time Warner synergy? That's what Entertainment Weekly is snarkily asking online because its "early look at the new Harry Potter movie just a got a whole lot earlier". My kudos to writer Jeff Giles who, perhaps for the first time in the recent history of the official magazine for receptionists, acually wrote something blisteringly honest about this oops in the movie biz instead of sugar-coating everything.

"In an irony sure to set blogger hearts beating giddily, the film graces the cover of EW’s new fall preview issue, which [just] hits stands. EW and Warner Bros. share a parent company, but they clearly do not share, you know, important friggin’ information.... A Warners publicist stressed that word about the rescheduling had only just come down today — which is most likely true, given that the Half-Blood teaser trailer is already in circulation. As of tomorrow, it will run with the new animated Star Wars movie, almost certainly still trumpeting a fall release date. The Potter movie is also on the cover of the fall preview issue of the British film magazine Empire. "

Underscoring that maxim ("Don't get mad, get even"), EW then proceeds to bitchslap the Warner Bros executives whose decision to push the film out of fall "presumably, is not something the executives just figured out this morning. Some outside the studio are already pointing out that moving Half-Blood will also stop next year’s profits from looking seriously underwhelming after the phenomenal success of The Dark Knight. 'They don’t need the money this year anymore,' says a rival studio exec. 'When a movie overperforms the way Dark Knight has, you really don’t need Harry Potter in the fall.' Asked about the seriousness of moving a Potter movie so late in the game, the exec adds, 'Turning a battleship that big isn’t easy. You’re not talking just about the movie, but all the merchandising, the toys and stuff. It’s huge. And it has a domino effect across the rest of the summer slate.' 

"...Like every studio that ever pushed a movie back in a hurry, Warners’ press statement stressed how proud everyone is of the movie and tried to preempt any suggestion that something might be amiss, creatively or otherwise. One clear winner here — apart from EW readers now in possession of a 'Dewey Beats Truman' collectible — is Disney’s animated movie, Bolt, which will now have the family audience all to itself come Thanksgiving.  Could it be that Harry Potter is just scared of dogs?"

DHD CONTEST: Dark Knight Predictions! 

UPDATE: Studio sources tell me that record-breaking advance ticket sales for Warner Bros' Batman: The Dark Knight "continue to grow at a pace unlike any other film in history". Even the number of locations in North America where the comic book caper will be playing -- 4,366 -- is an Industry record. There are also approximately 3,000 theaters that will start screening the Christian Bale/Heath Ledger actioner at 12:01AM Friday. Meanwhile, every IMAX show in New York City this weekend is sold out. By all accounts this should be Hollywood's best-ever 3-day overall North American weekend at the box office: the number to beat is last year's $151+ million. So Dark Knight's expected $130+ million opening, combined with Universal's anticipated $25+ million Mamma Mia! debut, should expand the marketplace by a huge number to include those two films and all the very popular holdovers like Sony's Hancock, Universal's Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Disney/Pixar's Wall-E, Warner Bros' Journey To The Center Of The Earth, and Universal's Wanted. As a Warner Bros exec emailed me, "Should be a fun ride this weekend..."

'Dark Knight' Speeding Towards Friday: Selling, Selling, Selling ...Nearly Sold Out

MONDAY AM: Bigger... Bigger... BIGGEST! The Dark Knight's weekend tally was more than first thought -- a record-setting $158.4M, according to Warner Bros. That comfortably beats Spider-Man 3's $151.1M for best-ever 3-day non-holiday weekend. The latest Batman installment's Sunday take of $43.5M was down only -8% compared to Saturday's $47.6M and set the best-ever Sunday total for its 9th record. Friday's final figure was lowered to $67.1M. TDK's 10th record beats the all-time first week tally.

SUNDAY 8PM UPDATE: I've just been told by unofficial sources that Warner Bros' The Dark Knight is playing to packed Sunday performances for over $40M and maybe as high as $43M. That would mean a 9th record for the latest Batman installment since Spider-Man 3's Sunday take in 2007 was a record-setting $39.9M. It's also now abundantly clear that the Warner Bros caped crusader will crush the old 3-day weekend non-holiday record set by Spider-Man 3 last year. Also, Dark Knight should break its 9th record by beating the all-time weekly tally. Meanwhile, in its first six days, DK will have grossed more than the entire run of director Chris Nolan's first installment Batman Begins. 

SUNDAY AM: Warner Bros is reporting The Dark Knight will finish with a total North American weekend take of $155.3M. Here's the surprising studio breakdown: $67.8 million Friday, including those record-setting opening day midnight shows; $48 million Saturday (-29%), and projected $39.4 million Sunday (-18%). So if Sunday holds up, that FSS (Fri-Sat-Sun) non-holiday figure will be enough to snag the record from Spider-Man 3's $151.1 million. But it'll be close. The latest Batman installment did not set a record Saturday, leaving Spidey 3's best-ever $51.3M intact. That Friday to Saturday decline looks steep, but actually they mirror each other without the opening day midnight frenzy. Total domestic grosses for all the movies playing this weekend look around $253M. That easily shatters the best-ever FSS non-holiday overall record of $218.4 million set on July 7-9, 2006 when Disney's Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest opened. Today, Some rival studios reported lower figures for Friday and Saturday and questioned Warner Bros numbers as well as believed the Sunday estimate was too aggressive. Meanwhile, in a successful bit of counter-programming, Universal's Mamma Mia! finished 2nd with $9.8M Saturday for a $27.6M opening weekend. Overseas, the ABBA musical has made a fast $72.6M in just 11 days. See Top 10 B.O. below...

(Photo by Jim Stevenson of Dark Knight moviegoers on line for midnight previews at Los Angeles theater.)

Media By Numbers' OFFICIAL DARK KNIGHT RECORDS SO FAR (in order of occurrence):

1 - LARGEST NUMBER OF OPENING THEATRES WITH 4,366 (MORE THAN THE 4,362 DEBUT THEATRES OF PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END IN 2007).

2 - BIGGEST MIDNIGHT PREVIEW GROSS WITH $18.489 MILLION IN 3,040 THEATRES (BEATS STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH AND ITS $16.9 MILLION IN 2,915 THEATRES IN 2005).

3 - BIGGEST IMAX MIDNIGHT PREVIEWS SET AN NEW RECORD WITH $640,000 (INCLUDED IN THE $18.489 MILLION PREVIEW NUMBER).

4 - BIGGEST SINGLE-DAY GROSS IN BOX-OFFICE HISTORY WITH $67.850 MILLION (BESTS THE $59,841,919 SET BY SPIDER-MAN 3 IN 2007).

5 - BIGGEST OPENING WEEKEND GROSS IN BOX OFFICE HISTORY WITH $155.340 MILLION (BESTS THE $151,116 MILLION SET BY SPIDER-MAN 3 IN 2007).

6 - BIGGEST OPENING WEEKEND GROSS FOR AN IMAX RELEASE IN BOX OFFICE HISTORY WITH $6,214,061 MILLION IN 94 THEATRES WITH $66,107 PER THEATRE. (BESTS THE $4.7 MILLION SET BY SPIDER-MAN 3 IN 2007.) IMAX SHOWING AT FULL CAPACITY $1.9 MILLION ON SATURDAY ALONE.

7 - BIGGEST OPENING WEEKEND OF 2008 WITH $151.340 (BEATS INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL'S $101.137 MILLION FROM MAY 23-25, 2008)

8 - BIGGEST JULY OPENING EVER (BEATS PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST'S $135,634,554 ON JULY 7, 2006).

Believe it or not, there were other movies opening and playing at the box office.

In 2nd place, Universal's North American debut of its movie version of the globally popular Mamma Mia! musical proved great counter-programming against Batman. It made $9.6M Friday for what should be a 3-day weekend total of $28.1M, better than Hairspray's $27.4M and what the studio had expected especially since ABBA was never as big in the U.S. as overseas.  Exit polling showed that 3/4 of the audience was female, 64% were age 30 or older, slightly more than a third of the audience had seen the musical, while more than half had heard of it but not seen it. The main reasons given for seeing Mamma Mia! were the "musical numbers" (56%), followed by the "songs of ABBA" (49%), “I like musicals” (47%, skewing female), and Meryl Streep (47%, especially among older females).

Sony's holdover Hancock sat solidly in 3rd place with a $4.5M Friday and $5.5M Saturday from 3,776 plays for a $14M weekend and $191.5M new cume. The Will Smith actioner has now made a humongous $444M worldwide. No. 4 was Warner Bros' Journey To The Center Of The Earth 3D, which dropped 47% from a week ago $11.9M for the weekend and new cume of $43M. Disney/Pixar's hit toon Wall-E made $2.9M Friday for 5th by weekend's end with $9.8M and new cume of $182.4M. But the surprise was 6th place Hellboy II: The Golden Army's 71% fall from grace after finishing a big No 1 last weekend. It made only $10M this weekend for a $56.4M new cume. Obviously, the Dark Horse comic character lost out to the way-more-famous DC Comics caped crusader. At No. 7, Starz/Fox's toon Space Chimps earned $7.3M for FSS. Universal's Wanted was 8th with $1.5M Friday and probably $5.1M for the weekend. At No. 9, Warner Bros' Get Smart took in a $4M weekend and $119.5M new cume. And Paramount's Kung Fu Panda jumped up to #10 with a $1.7M weekend and $206.5M new cume. One week after its debut, Fox's disastrous Meet Dave fell out of the Top 10 altogether. 

SATURDAY 3PM: The Dark Knight's Friday opening was even bigger than first thought, according to final numbers come in -- not just $66.4M but $67+M in North American gross from a record-setting wide release of 4,366 theaters. That includes the $18.5M in midnight-to-3AM shows from a smaller pool of 3,040 venues. Now Warner Bros has smashed the record for the biggest midnight show ever (better than the $16.9M set by 2005's  Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith then playing in 2,915 venues), and the biggest single day ever (better than the $59.8M set by May 4, 2007's Spider-Man 3 in 4,252 venues, including midnight shows). So what about the weekend total? "$153M to $160M -- it all depends on Saturday results," my Warner Bros insider just told me.  That would be ANOTHER record-smasher!

The question is whether Dark Knight goes up or down -- and by how much either way. The Saturday number to beat is Spider-Man 3's $51.3M, which was down 14% from its Friday number. The FSS number to best is Spider-Man 3's $151M, including a take of $39.9M on Sunday. Interestingly, rival studios are hesitant to even venture a guess about the latest Batman installment's 3-day weekend total. "Saturday business will tell the tale of where this is headed," one rival studio bigwig stressed to me. Said another, "The hard thing about this movie is you don't know if all the shows tonight are already sold out, so their number might not move much."

Here is the way to think about Saturday and the weekend: if you start with $66.4M Friday and back out the $18.5M of midnight shows, then Dark Knight's comparable starting point is $47.5M. So if the pic is down 5% from there on Saturday, it would be $45M. If it were 10%, it would be $52M (what it would take to best Spidey 3's Saturday record). That is the most likely range for today. But those would be announced as $45M, down 30%, or $52M, down 20%, as they will be compared to the Friday number which included midnight shows. Sunday is likely to drop somewhere between 15%-20% from there. So Dark Knight needs to be $47M-$48M today to set itself up to best the weekend record.

FRIDAY 10:30PM: More numbers show The Dark Night opens to $65M Friday.

FRIDAY 5:30PM: Warner Bros sources tell me that The Dark Knight is opening to a humongous $60M today from a widest-ever release of 4,366 North American theaters. That's breathtaking box office gross, even for a mega-blockbuster! So the studio is privately preening that this latest Batman installment has scored the biggest Friday ever, beating Sony's previous record-setter Spider-Man 3 with $59.8M scored on Friday, May 4th, 2007. What also makes this number so stunning is that the Chris Nolan-directed DC Comics dark drama starring Christian Bale and the late Heath Ledger is not as kid friendly as the comic book caper starring the Marvel webbed hero. Meanwhile, despite all the sell-outs this weekend, seats for The Dark Knight are selling at the astounding rate of 15 tickets per second at Fandango.com, the big movie ticket service. Clearly, the great word of mouth is spreading as well as the rave reviews: 90% positive among cream of the crop critics on RottenTomatoes.com. So far, the only breakdown available for Friday's box office is a record $18.5M from 12:01 AM showings, including a best-ever $640K for IMAX midnight previews.

FRIDAY 7AM: Warner Bros is poised to making Hollywood history this weekend. That's because its opening comic book caper The Dark Knight is already on its way to breaking records left and right today even as it's still sparking a ticket-selling frenzy across North America. I've just been told that the latest Batman installment's $18.5 million midnight shows broke the record of $16 million set by Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. According to Media By Numbers, Imax showings of also set a record with $640K in the midnight previews. (This figure is included in the studio's overall.) According to Media By Numbers, IMAX showings of the Warner Bros mega-blockbuster also set a record with $640K for the midnight previews. This figure is included in the studio's overall 12:01AM screenings number of $18.4 million. Director Chris Nolan shot six major action sequences, including the opening six minutes and Joker's first appearance in the film, with IMAX cameras. This marks the first time ever that a major feature film has been even partially shot using IMAX cameras, deemed a revolutionary integration of the two film formats. Across North America, theater owners are working feverishly to squeeze in more screenings of the runaway success to meet voracious moviegoer demand. News reports were quoting fans as saying they'd pay $100 per ticket just to see the PG-13 pic.

Fandango.com, the largest online ticketseller, has just announced that Dark Knight has jumped to No. 2 on its Top 10 List of Advance Ticket-Sellers. It's No. 4 on MovieTickets.com's list. Fandango.com says it's now selling an average of nearly 10 tickets per second for the pic during peak periods, while MovieTickets.com cites more than 1,300 performances nationwide that are still sold out, including more than 220 in New York City and Los Angeles alone. These are extraordinary metrics underscoring Hollywood's belief that not just the individual but also the overall 3-day non-holiday box office record is going down this weekend.

Top 10 Advance Ticket-Sellers list from Fandango.com:
1. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005) 
2. The Dark Knight (2008)
3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
4. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
5. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007)
6. Hannah Montana 3D (2008)
7. Lord Of The Rings: Return of the King (2003)
8. Spider-Man 3 (2007)
9. Sex And The City (2008)
10. The Passion Of The Christ (2004)

MovieTickets.com's Top Pre-Sale List Of All Times:
1.  Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith
2.  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
3.  The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
4. The Dark Knight

EXCLUSIVE: Though they won't dare discuss this in public, I'm told that Warner Bros bigwigs are hoping for between $160 million and $170 million for Batman: The Dark Knight's 3-day weekend total gross from a record 4,366 North American theaters despite a 152 minute running time. Now that may be impossible, and a huge increase from the $130 million that the studio bosses were expecting earlier in the week, but anything over $100 million is going to be considered a humongous success. Because the ticket sales frenzy, from coast to coast, city to city, town to town, with almost 24/7 performances even in the hinterlands, new sceenings being squeezed in by the minute, online services selling an average of nearly 10 tickets per second for the pic during peak periods, and all those IMAX sell-outs, has everyone revved up.

Warner Bros toppers have their sights set on taking down every record, too. They especially want to better Sony's Spider-Man 3, which scored the best 3-day weekend opening of $151.1 million over May 4-6 last year. And to beat the best-ever 3-day non-holiday weekend box office overall , this Batman installment has to better $218.4 million in total domestic grosses set on July 7-9, 2006, when Disney's Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest opened with $131.5 million. Meanwhile, see the Batman franchise numbers here.

My own box office gurus' predictions for this weekend are: a low of $100M to a high of $135M for Warner Bros' The Dark Knight from a record 4,366 North American theaters, a low of $20M to a high of $31M for Universal's Mamma Mia! in 2,976 venues (the ticket sales frenzy is driving this musical, well, batty), and $6M to $8M for Starz/Fox's Space Chimps in 2,511 runs.

DHD CONTEST: Dark Knight Predictions! 

THURSDAY UPDATE: Here is the most recent sales info regarding Batman: The Dark Knight: Fandango, the nations leading movie ticket sellers, says it appears to be selling between 9 tickets per second for the pic. More than 2,000 sold-out showtimes. Add that to MovieTickets.com’s 1,600 and you’ve got close to 4,000 performance sell-outs! I'm told 1,700 of the sell-outs are for showtimes between 12:01 AM and 8:00AM Friday. And the number of locations in North America where the comic book caper will be playing -- 4,366 -- is an Industry record. There are sold-out shows through the weekend from Washington D.C. to Puyallup, Washington, and in towns like Bozeman, Montana and Fitchburg, Wisconsin. I can report that 6:00AM shows are scheduled in bif cities and small, from San Diego to Hazelwood, Missouri, and Tigard, Oregon, etc.

7PM: With two hours still to go until the clock strikes midnight ET, Dark Knight has reached MovieTickets.com's Top-5 Pre-sale List of All-Time:
1. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
3. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
4. Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert
5. The Dark Knight

Fandango COO Rick Butler says: “Friday is pacing to be our biggest ticket-selling day in company history. It’s very possible that we’ll break our hourly ticketing record by tomorrow morning.” Currently, Dark Knight represents 94% of ticket sales on Fandango.com, the nation’s leading movie ticketing destination.

As of 12PM today, MovieTickets.com already has over 1,600 performances sold out in North America, including over 300 in LA and NY alone. Warner Bros sources tell me that Imax has 1,600 shows in all U.S. screens for this weekend's opening. As of 5PM Wednesday, 1,400 of those shows were sold out.

As of 1PM today, Dark Knight is currently No. 9 on MovieTickets.com's Top-10 Pre-Sale List of All-Time, which includes IMAX ticket sales. It's currently ahead of two Spider-Man blockbusters (Spider-Man 3 and Spider-Man 2), three Harry Potter films (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.
 
Dark Knight accounted for 88% of tickets sold on MovieTickets.com on Wednesday. As of 12 PM, it has accounted for 87% of all tickets sold today.

WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Studio sources tell me that record-breaking advance ticket sales for Warner Bros' Batman: The Dark Knight "continue to grow at a pace unlike any other film in history". Even the number of locations in North America where the comic book caper will be playing -- 4,366 -- is an Industry record. There are also approximately 3,000 theaters that will start screening the actioner at 12:01AM Friday. Meanwhile, every IMAX show in New York City this weekend is sold out. By all accounts this should be Hollywood's best-ever 3-day overall North American weekend at the box office: the number to beat is last year's $151+ million. So Dark Knight's expected $130+ million opening, combined with Universal's anticipated $25+ million Mamma Mia! debut, should expand the marketplace by a huge number to include those two films and all the very popular holdovers like Sony's Hancock, Universal's Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Disney/Pixar's Wall-E, Warner Bros' Journey To The Center Of The Earth, and Universal's Wanted. As a Warner Bros exec emailed me, "Should be a fun ride this weekend..."

MovieTickets.com says that, four days prior to its release, Warner Bros' Batman: The Dark Knight has sold out 700 performances in North America and is outselling 3 of MovieTickets.com’s Top 10 Performing Films of All-Time. To date, the pic has more than 3-times as many advance tickets as Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, more than 2-times as many as Spider-Man 3 and almost 2-times as many as Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers at the same point in the sales cycle. This fuels predictions that the latest Batman 152-minute pic can make $130+ million in domestic gross for the upcoming 3-day weekend opening because of round-the-clock showings.

In a recent MovieTickets.com survey, moviegoers aware of The Dark Knight expressed "wannasee" during its opening weekend in all four age groups polled: 24 & Under – 98%, 25 to 34 – 92%, 35 to 44 – 78%, 45 to 59 – 66%. In addition, the survey found that 86% of males and 76% of females polled said they intend to see it during its opening weekend.

Meanwhile Fandango (which sells tickets to more than 15,000 theater screens) reports that Warner Bros' The Dark Knight has grabbed a whopping 90% of all ticket sales for the upcoming weekend show. That's incredible considering it was still only Tuesday. COO Rick Butler claims fan anticipation is the highest since Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. "Moviegoer curiosity about the late Heath Ledger’s performance as The Joker is helping fuel additional ticket sales, outside of the traditional action movie and Batman fan base."

Also according to Fandango, every showing at the AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13 IMAX theater this weekend is sold out, including the Friday morning 4AM show. There is still an IMAX screening not yet sold out in New Rochelle, NY, at 6:10AM. IMAX tickets cost more than standard admission ($16 to $12 for adults in NYC). 

And Comcast just released 6 exclusive videos of The Dark Knight it claims can;t be found anywhere else, as well as a new  videogame based on the pic.  Plus, let's not forget the onslaught of tie-in products...

It's understandable even if ridiculous that Warner Bros keeps trying to lower everyone's expectations for this behemoth blockbuster of a Batman Begins sequel. My sources at the studio keep insisting that Dark Knight will "only" make $90 million to $100 million for its opening 3-day weekend. I can't believe they're seriously suggesting that Dark Knight will make less than Iron Man.

But the WB insiders point to all the increased competition at the megaplex now as opposed to the beginning of May. Whereas my box office gurus are predicting domestic gross as high as $130M for the wildly anticipated Christopher Nolan/Christian Bale film because of all those record-breaking early ticket sales at North American runs, including IMAX. That would put it 3rd in terms of all-time opening 3-day weekends -- behind Spider-Man 3 ($151.1M on May 4-6, 2007)and Pirates Of The Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest ($131.6M on July 7, 2006). One worry mitigating the Heath Ledger fanboy factor which Hollywood has mentioned is that the pic's 2 hour and 32 minute running time will limit showings. But that isn't an issue anymore since many theater managers/owners plan round-the-clock screenings during its midnight July 18 mega-debut.

'Dark Knight' Prediction: $130M Weekend

 I'm only reporting this because NBC is trying to keep all details about the show under wraps. The spin-off now with the Baby Mama and SNL star debuts on Super Bowl Sunday in February 2009 after NBC's The Office.

 Gee, could the Big Media cartel's negotiating group be more unpleasant about this meeting? I said this during the writers strike and it bears repeating: Just keep talking. Just keep haggling. Don't stop talking:

July 15, 2008: Statement by the AMPTP... "SAG's negotiators have requested a sidebar meeting with AMPTP involving a small group of people from each side. Out of respect for the SAG membership, the AMPTP has agreed to the meeting but has made it clear that the meeting will be solely for the purpose of listening to whatever SAG has to say.  It is important to note that SAG has declined to specify the purpose of the meeting, and that AMPTP continues to call on SAG's Hollywood leaders to accept AMPTP's final offer. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at 1PM at the AMPTP's headquarters.

1. SAG Denies Variety's Latest Fabrication
2. Big Media Does It Again To H'wood Guilds
3. SAG: "We Did Not Reject AMPTP's Offer"; Big Media Threaten Big Actors Guild
4. SAG-AMPTP: It's Been A De Facto Lockout
5. SAG Presented Counter-Proposal Today; Will AMPTP Negotiate Or Just Walk Away?
6. SAG vs AMPTP: The Nastiness Ramps Up
7. Finke/LA Weekly:  Calm-Down, There Will Not Be A WGA Strike Sequel
8. Finke/LA Weekly: The Details the Moguls Don't Want You to Know

I'm told the tête-à-tête between Quentin Tarantino and Brad Pitt takes place today in France. As I've previously reported, the actor is Quentin Tarantino's first choice to star in his planned World War II movie Inglorious Bastards, whose script's foreign rights are being shopped to several Hollywood studios. But I hear one reason they're waiting to make offers is to see whether Brad is on board. Tarantino wants to start filming by October to debut at the Cannes Film Festival in May.

1. Quentin Tarantino Talking To Brad Pitt To Star In 'Inglorious Bastards'
2. Quentin Tarantino Unveils 'Inglorious Bastards' To 4 Major Hollywood Studios

Last night on NBC's The Tonight Show, Jay Leno was doing his Monday night "Headlines" segment when he held up a TV Week cover with a picture of himself and a cutline that said "Host of The Tonight Show on ABC". When the few laughs died down, Leno looked into the camera and smirked, "It's like a headline from the future."

Look, I've always thought that Leno and ABC were a logical fit when he leaves NBC (notice I don't say if he leaves NBC) next year. Yes, Fox gets more ink as his possible next home. But ABC doesn't seem to want edgy programming, so Leno's exaggerated mainstream appeal makes sense for the network -- even if his advanced age doesn't. Here's the problem with both Fox and ABC for Jay: he wants to go head to head with Conan and Letterman. So Nightline would be history.

Back in 2002, Disney's Bob Iger was ready to jettison the late night news show in a heartbeat if he could lure David Letterman away from CBS. It almost happened -- that is, until word leaked out that Disney was axing ABC's best news program starring its best news anchor Ted Koppel. There was a shitstorm of protest.

Then, in 2004, Iger sought again to steal a late night host -- this time, Conan. That was when Zucker, in order to keep O'Brien at NBC, promised to make Conan host of The Tonight Show in 2009 -- thus explaining the origins of Leno's non-stop animosity towards the pint-sized Big Media prez/CEO. Given that Leno is still the late night ratings leader, Iger is circling, along with Fox and Sony television. After all, Koppel's gone, and Nightline is an afterthought. 

So that leaves just one more question mark: Jimmy Kimmel. ABC is extending its option with him by another year, keeping him at the network through at least 2010. But that's also the earliest date that Leno under his NBC contract terms can start working somewhere else. Kimmel could stay in his time slot if Leno does just a 30-minute show, agree to do a later show, or move to Fox and do an earlier and edgier show. See, this wasn't so hard to figure out... Stay tuned. 

EXCLUSIVE: The Screen Actors Guild is furious over Variety's erroneous report tonight that the guild "may agree to the majors' request to send out their final offer to the 120,000 guild members at the end of July." I'm told by one insider, "It's bullshit, especially the headline." That started out "SAG to send offer to members” until it was changed after complaints to the equally misleading “SAG may send offer to it’s members”. Said another source, "Absolutely not true at this time. Irresponsible reporting." The article also makes false assertions that SAG has stalled the negotiations -- ridiculous since it's now the AMPTP's turn to respond to SAG's counter-offer. This is yet another example of the trade writer Dave McNary making up a story about the guild negotiations that has no basis in reality, just like he did repeatedly during the WGA strike. And his inaccuracies are always aimed at stirring the pot in favor of the Big Media moguls, and against the guild leaders who fight for better contract terms. Really, when is this nonsense going to stop? As I've noted over and over, Variety writes what the moguls tell it because it's so dependent on them for advertising. It's like a parasite clinging to its host - and just as disgusting.

1. Another Variety Anti-WGA Slanted Article
2. Variety's Strike Disinformation Campaign
3. WGAW Says Variety Scoop Has No Reality

Oops. The AMPTP should have first checked with its bosses in Big Media before making that threat to SAG leadership to lower the employer offer on the table because of the dire outlook in this "deteriorating economy" for Hollywood movies and television. As it happened a lot of the infotainment CEOs were out of town at the annual Allen & Co. media conference. And they were making statements that were a lot more optimistic than the ones coming out of AMPTP headquarters. It's yet another case of the moguls talking out of both sides of their mouth -- by claiming strong results to Wall Street and pleading poverty to Hollywood guilds. (Remember, this telling YouTube video "The Voices Of Uncertainty" put together by WGA members that featured the Big Media CEOs boasting about the behemoth bucks their companies are making off the Internet?) Here's how the moguls answered questions at Camp Allen about their companies and the economic downturn:

-- NBC Universal President Jeff Zucker: “I think we'll hold up pretty well." (AP)

-- News Corp. Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch: “So far, entertainment and media is doing just fine.” (Bloomberg TV)

-- Sony Corp. Chairman and CEO Howard Stringer: “Our entertainment business is in good shape.” (Bloomberg TV)

-- Time Warner ex-chairman Richard Parsons, responding to a question on his outlook for the media industry: “I’m much more bullish.”

I'm sure there are many more quotes...

When a Hollywood couple split, the biggest headache is for the Hollywood PR companies who have them as clients. So flackmeister Lewis Kay, who oversees BNC's entertainment department, should be having a migraine right this minute now that Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman have uncoupled. Because the firm of Bragman Nyman and Cafferelli represents both of them. The iconic comedic pair were not just together for five years, but Kay has long represented Jimmy, and Amy Zvi has long flacked for Sarah. The natural thing to happen is for at least one of the celebs to change PR reps. (Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise did that, so too Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe, and a long list of others.) But Kay has worked through this kind of pain before. His department continues to rep both Rebecca Romjin and John Stamos after their uncoupling, and now it's a menage a trois since BNC is also flacking Romjin's new husband Jerry O'Connell. So let's see if BNC can retain both Kimmel and Silverman as clients. Kay also reps Arrested Development's Will Arnett and Baby Mama's Amy Poehler. Luckily for BNC, not only is that couple staying together but she's pregnant. So the next time a Hollywood flack lies to you, and he will, remember he's living in a world of hurt, too. 

I've already discussed The Dark Knight's $130 million prospects. But Universal's Mamma Mia! also opens domestically on July 18th, so expect one of the biggest 3-day weekends ever at the box office. The studio thinks this counter-programming from Playtone's Tom Hanks and his producing partner Gary Goetzman will open strong at $25+ million. (I agree since keep seeing those ubiquitous ads and then can't get that damn ABBA song out of my head.) After all, the pic is based on the musical that's a global sensation that's been seen by 30 million people since it debuted in London in 1999. But this is one of those rare times when it doesn't matter what a pic makes stateside. Because Mamma Mia! has already blown the doors off overseas box office and looks to make $200M internationally. It opened gangbusters in Greece and the United Kingdom already and debuted in 11 more international markets this weekend, for an estimated $24M overseas weekend with a per screen average of $17,544. The U.K. opened the film at No. 1 with 34% market share for an estimated $13.2M, which  makes it the biggest opening ever for a musical in the U.K. It is also Universal's 4th biggest opening ever in the market, behind only Bridget Jones 2, Mr. Bean's Holiday and King Kong. Australia opened No. 1 with $5.2M and 28% market share and also is the biggest debut ever for a musical. Scandinavia, the Middle East, and parts of Asia all had great numbers. In Greece, where the pic was filmed, Mamma Mia! opened last week to huge numbers for that country. Expectedly, as home to Abba, Sweden had an outstanding No. 1 opening. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that the pic is doing so well because ABBA is still huge around the world even if it was never that big in this country. (Although the Abba music in those Aussie films popular here, Muriel's Wedding and Priscilla Queen Of The Desert, made the pics...) The Swedish pop group burst on the European scene by winning the Eurovision Song Contest and has sold over 400 million records. Even though ABBA last performed together in 1982, the group still sells 2M to 3M records each year. I'm really curious to see all of next weekend's box office numbers roll in...

He passed away at Cedars-Sinai. He was a close friend to many in Hollywood. Pals say Charlie Joffe was smart, generous, and with Jack Rollins the first to have a really successful comedy management and production company that set the standard with blue-chip clients like Woody Allen, Robin Williams and Billy Crystal.

SUNDAY AM: Universal's Hellboy II: The Golden Army heated up the North American box office with a fiery $13.7 million Friday and $11.7 million Saturday from 3,204 theaters. It made $35.8M total over the weekend for No. 1 as well as in four foreign countries that raised $4.6M. With big support from African-Americans and Latinos, the audience skewed male with slightly more than half of moviegoers age 25 years or older, and the majority had seen the first film in theaters or on DVD. Obviously, the studio's uber-marketing attempt to humanize the Guillermo del Toro pic's bizarro collection of characters from the Dark Horse comic book worked nicely. That's why Ron Perlman as Hellboy did promos on every NBC Uni media outlet imaginable. (Even on cable's Oxygen channel with Bravo's James Lipton interviewing him...) "We wanted to make him as audience friendly and accessible as possible," one Uni exec explained to me. The fact that Hellboy II made 50% more than the 2004 first movie's $23.1M opening FSS is a real triumph for Universal Pictures, whose bosses Marc Shmuger, David Linde and Donna Langley swooped in and scooped up the sequel from Sony/Revolution Studios which did the original Hellboy I. (And the trio wanted it before del Toro's Oscar-nominated Pan's Labyrinth ever opened.) As one Uni exec exulted, "We took somebody's reject pile and made it into a franchise for us." 

At No. 2, Sony Pictures' first-placer finisher over July 4th, Hancock, kept one of the summer's best holds -- -47% -- on the box office, earning $10.3M Friday and $13 million Saturday from its 3,965 runs. It had a $33M weekend and a $165M cume. So far, foreign is $180M and its worldwide total is $345M in just under 2 weeks. Its total domestic take is heading to $225M, internationally to $350M, so Hancock is on track to earn maybe as much as $600M worldwide. Attribute it to Will Smith's star power and the strong word of mouth for the film, which received a B+ Cinemascore and an A- among its core of young men. Audiences (more than the critics) seem to like that unexpected third act plot twist in the pic.

In 3rd place, New Line / Warner Bros' Journey To The Center Of The Earth 3D took the freeway to a $6.7 million debut Friday and $7.9 million Saturday from 2,811 venues for #3 and a $20.5M weekend. The studio thinks that's a strong opening for a film costing just $54M (and, frankly, looks it). The 3D screens outperformed the 2D screens by 3 to 1. "I think anytime dinosaurs exist in a movie, don't bet against it," one Hollywood marketing guru told me. (Talk about date-swapping: the Brendan Fraser starrer was supposed to debut in August when the actor's other summer movie The Mummy 3 was slated for July. Then Universal moved The Mummy to August, so Warner Bros moved Journey forward to July. Got that?)

Pixar/Disney's lonely droid Wall-E was No. 4 since it keeps going and going like the Energizer bunny, racking up another $5.6M Friday and $7.4M Saturday from 3,849 plays for a $18.5M weekend and $162M cume. Universal's Angelina Jolie-James McAvoy starrer Wanted was No. 5 with $3.6M Friday and $4.5M Saturday for an $11.5M weekend and new cume of $112M. In the 6th spot was Warner Bros' Get Smart with $2.2M Friday and $2.9M Saturday for another $7.1M weekend and new cume of $111M.

And all the way back at No. 7 was 20th Century Fox's Meet Dave which even the studio didn't bother to hide was going to bomb big-time. The Eddie Murphy starrer opened to an embarrassing $1.7M Friday and $2M Saturday despite playing in 3,011 theaters for only a $5.3M weekend. It's not like this is the first moronic movie Eddie has starred in -- remember Norbit and Daddy Day Care which did big business? -- but this was "an incredibly difficult one to market," an insider explained to me. So was that other sci-fi Eddie pic, The Adventures Of Pluto Nash, which tanked as well. The general concensus is that Meet Dave should have been aimed "at young kids from the get-go". Or just never made. Fox will spread the loss with two financing partners New Regency and Dune.

The rest of the Top 10 were holdovers. No. 8 went to DreamWorks Animation/Paramount's Kung Fu Panda which took in $1.2M Friday and $1.7M for a $4.3M weekend and new cume of $202M. No. 9 is Picturehouse's Kit Kittredge: An American Girl on 1,849 theaters struggled for $758K on Friday and $878K Saturday for a $2.3M weekend and an $11M cume. In 10th place, Paramount's Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull which eked out another $602K on Friday and $951K Saturday for a $2.2M weekend and a fat cume of $310.4M.

It was a big moviegoing weekend overall with $150+M box office but still down 12% from last year's record-breaker. 

Today, SAG issued the below statement denying media reports (not mine) that it had rejected the AMPTP's "last best final" offer. Also, I've just learned that the big actors guild has signed guaranteed completion contracts with over 500 independent productions unaffiliated with the AMPTP, while the Hollywood CEOs continue their de facto lockout by refusing to return to normal production even though SAG has said it has no plans for a strike authoritzation vote. Meanwhile, it came out today that the AMPTP threatened SAG at the end of yesterday's session. I would have reported this, but the Big Media cartel's negotiating group admitted saw fit to distribute transcripts of exec VP Carol Lombardini's closing remarks to only what it considered friendly media outlets -- the trades have it here and here -- and not to me. The trades called it a "warning": but it was a clear threat. 

UPDATE: *After getting hammered over this news blackout attempt against me, the AMPTP tonight apologized  "because your site is a central hub for negotiation news". Once again, this shows what a rogue group the AMPTP has become and how the Hollywood CEOs need to tighten their leash on it and get back to being personally involved in the negotiations themselves.*

I have dutifully posted every AMPTP statement about the SAG negotiations which the Big Media clique has sent me. Tonight, I emailed all the moguls and their corporate flacks to complain about this gross manipulation of information about Hollywood labor negotiations. This AMPTP news blackout against me never happened even through the bitter WGA strike. But the coverage of the SAG-AMPTP bargaining has been even more slanted towards the AMPTP than during the WGA strike by these media dependent on studio and network advertising. Today's trade headlines, for instance, accused SAG of rejecting the AMPTP's offer when in fact SAG delivered a full counter-proposal. Another story today in Variety accused SAG of stalling the talks when in fact it is the AMPTP's turn now to respond to SAG's offer.

All I can think is that the cartel is really starting to sweat now. Lombardini is the same ultra-hardliner who issued that disgusting ultimatum to the WGA during the writers strike and is understandably loathed by a wide range of Hollywood guild negotiaters. Now she's threatening SAG. "It is no secret that we are in a deteriorating economy," Lombardini said. "Our companies are not immune from the effects of this economic slowdown. It is very possible that, as a result of changing economic conditions, we will have to reevaluate the offer we have on the table." However, someone needs to remind Lombardini in particular, and the AMPTP generally, that the Hollywood studios are having yet another lucrative summer movie season with nearly every film outperforming financial expectations, while the TV networks all enjoyed rate and overall revenue increases when they wrapped up their upfront dealmaking on advance advertising commitments for the 2008-2009 season. And though they all cry poverty publicly, heads of some of the studios and networks have told me their divisions contributed $1B in profits to the balance sheets of Big Media in 2007 alone.

Here is SAG's statement:

Los Angeles, July 11, 2008 — The Screen Actors Guild national negotiating committee met behind closed doors throughout the day today discussing bargaining strategies. The negotiations team remains committed to continuing to bargain for a fair contract. "Our national negotiating committee did not, as has been erroneously reported, reject the AMPTP’s offer. Instead, we made a comprehensive counter proposal that adopted some of their proposals and offered alternatives on others. We significantly narrowed the gap between us while remaining committed to the principles of our bargaining priorities,” said Screen Actors Guild national executive director and chief negotiator Doug Allen. We will provide an additional negotiations update on Monday.

Here is the AMPTP transcript of EVP Carol Lombardini's address to SAG at the end of yesterday's negotiation:

I have been directed by all of the companies that are present here and the remaining companies represented by the AMPTP in these negotiations to respond to your reply to our Final Offer.

We thoroughly reviewed what you presented to us today. We are not surprised by your response given all of SAG’s recent statements in the press over the past few days. But we are disappointed. We are disappointed because either we have failed to convince you that this is the best possible deal you can achieve or, alternatively, because you continue to adhere to the notion that the package we have offered just isn’t enough for you, especially when comparable deals have been approved by writers, directors and actors.

It is important to be clear: What we gave you on June 30th was our Final Offer. It doesn’t get any better than that. That is the best deal you are going to achieve from us. At the end of any negotiation, both parties reach a crossroads where a tough decision needs to be made. Do we make this deal or not? I can tell you that, for us, this isn’t the best deal. There are many areas of our business that need to be addressed that this contract does not fix. But we believe, putting our wishes and desires aside, that this is the best deal we can achieve with you.

Without going into all of the specific details, as to economics, we believe we presented you an extremely fair and lucrative package, particularly given the economic times we live in. For example, the increase in the Major Role performer rate in the first year of this contract is close to 6%. That would be an outsized increase in any contract cycle, but given today’s economy and the size of increases in general in other labor agreements, this is a large bump. Adding more money to this economic package would not only be unjustified, it would be irresponsible on our part. Therefore, the money is not going to change.

As for the New Media blueprint, we have told you that we have analyzed, considered, deliberated and discussed all of your proposals and counterproposals dealing with new media. Of course, we will confirm the items that we clarified on July 2nd as part of a Memorandum of Agreement when we reach agreement. But we have also informed you that we have made all the changes and modifications to that structure that we are prepared to make in an effort to address your concerns. In our assessment, doing any more will harm the overall structure of the New Media framework that we have worked out with every other talent guild.

So where does that leave us? We understand that you want more. I’ve never participated in a negotiation where one side or the other doesn’t. But now you have to decide. You can accept this deal, hold your heads up high, knowing that you have achieved the best deal attainable. Or you can continue to refuse to accept our Final Offer.

If that is your decision, it would be inappropriate for us to allow you to leave here today without understanding the potential consequences of that decision.

First – Under this Final Offer, once the deadline passes without ratification, retroactivity is gone. That results in a smaller package than the $250 million of gains contained in our Final Offer. And of course, it gets smaller each passing day.

Second – It is no secret that we are in a deteriorating economy. Our companies are not immune from the effects of this economic slowdown. It is very possible that, as a result of changing economic conditions, we will have to reevaluate the offer we have on the table.

Third – There is no question that given the uncertainty of not having a deal, some feature productions will go on, while others will not. Each one that doesn’t go forward results in fewer jobs and lost earnings for you. The risks are even greater in television. Continued uncertainty over contract status further jeopardizes scripted programming. Once again, it all amounts to less for you.

The decision is yours to make. We encourage you to let the entire membership decide.

UPDATE: Here is the definitive answer to whether there is now a de facto strike or a de facto lockout in Hollywood. I've repeatedly opined it's nonsensical to think there's been a de facto strike when it's the Hollywood CEOs who control the movie production spigot and who've made the decision not to let films go forward even though SAG has said publicly it has no plans to even ask its membership for a strike authorization vote (step one before a strike is even contemplated). And let me also make it clear here and now that the moguls have told me the production stoppage has nothing to do with completion bonds and insurance. As one mogul clarified in response to my question about this: "Most studio movies are not bonded -- those are indie films. And no insurance, unless separately bought for huge money, insures against strikes." Another mogul emailed me when I asked if completion bonds/insurance were the studios' reasons for the stoppage, "...That has not been the focus of our internal discussions." So what has been? "Firstly, our productions are coming to an end, as planned. Secondly, it's only prudent to know there is an agreement before committing millions of dollars of production which you may not be able to get back." Meanwhile, SAG has signed more than 500 guaranteed completion contracts with independent producers of films, the top of which boast budgets between $14 million and $40 million dollars and represent in total hundreds of millions of dollars. But pro-AMPTP factions are out and about in Hollywood claiming that SAG has shut down the town. B.S.

Despite the AMPTP's prickly statement tonight, and SAG's terse one (see both below), I can tell you what really went on in today's very crucial negotiating session... Today, SAG made a full counter-proposal to the Big Media cartel negotiating group's supposed "last best final" offer put on the table June 30th. I'm told SAG and the AMPTP "got closer together today" because the union worked hard to "remove some of the differences" and "made a number of moves" in the AMPTP's direction. "SAG is now engaging the AMPTP in the process of doing the same thing," I'm told. Specifically, SAG moved closer on some economic issues, New Media issues, and some other bargaining issues not previously addressed.

In turn, SAG told the AMPTP that it had to move closer on these issues, too. The AMPTP "starts every negotiation saying they're here to bargain for 'your' recommendation. And we say, 'If you want our board to recommend an offer to our membership, then you're going to have to do better than this. Because what you've given us won't make it beyond our board.' "

SAG's national board meets on July 26th and the guild made it clear to the AMPTP that SAG "would like to have something ready between now and then that our board would be interested in unilaterally recommending to the membership."

In all, both sides spent about 3 hours on discussion, first in a big committee group for an hour and a half, then in a smaller sidebar. Right now, the AMPTP hasn't said yes or no or even maybe to SAG's counter-offer. 

But there won't be any negotiations tomorrow, although both sides agreed to touch base. What's cause for concern, however, is that no future meeting is now scheduled: instead both sides will get together, a source tells me, "when there's a reason to get together so we might have a productive meeting in future".

What's next? Here are my thoughts: Now that the Screen Actors Guild wasted its political capital by losing its campaign against ratification of the AFTRA-AMPTP primetime TV contract, the AMPTP will predictably be taking every advantage of what it sees as its upper hand with the big actors union. (Funny enough, I'm told that the subject of the AFTRA vote wasn't discussed more than a couple of times today. And one insider suggested to me far too optimistically about the AMPTP, "I certainly think they understand that was no slam dunk for them.")

But a loss is still a loss. And I believe that the AMPTP's latest statement sounds as if it's ready any moment now to walk away from the negotiations, blame SAG for the stall, and issue an ultimatum -- just like the AMPTP did to the WGA. However, I can't believe the Hollywood CEOs are about to let their negotiating panel make a bad situation worse with a de facto lockout. The moguls would take a lot of heat for that, much more even than SAG, because they control the production spigot.

UPDATE: *Which is why it's nonsensical to think there's been a de facto strike when it's been the Hollywood CEOs who've made the decision not to put films into production even though SAG has said publicly it has no plans to even ask its membership for a strike authorization vote, Step One before a strike is even contemplated. Meanwhile, let me make it clear here and now that the moguls have told me the de facto lockout has nothing to do with completion bonds and insurance. As one mogul clarified in response to my question about this: "Most studio movies are not bonded -- those are indie films. And no insurance, unless separately bought for huge money, insures against strikes." Another mogul emailed me when I asked if completion bonds/insurance were the studios' reasons for the stoppage, "...That has not been the focus of our internal discussions." So what has been? "Firstly, our productions are coming to an end, as planned. Secondly, it's only prudent to know there is an agreement before committing millions of dollars of production which you may not be able to get back." Meanwhile, SAG has signed more than 500 guaranteed completion contracts with independent producers of films, the top of which boast budgets between $14 million and $40 million dollars and represent in total hundreds of millions of dollars. But pro-AMPTP factions are out and about in Hollywood claiming that SAG has shut down the town. *

As for TV production, it ramps up around July 25th.

That's why I'm hoping that both sides stay put and negotiate with an eye to that July 26th SAG national board meeting. The goal now is to put a deal together that the panel can recommend to its members. That way SAG can save face. And the AMPTP, too, since it would meet the August 15th ratification vote deadline imposed by their "last best final" offer. As I've reported previously, the AMPTP offered the WGA a total 10 last best final offers, and one ultimatum (with 2 items to take off the table that the AMPTP negotiated back on the table for the DGA). So there's no loss of face if the AMPTP tweaks the terms of its offer, and the two sides come closer. Then all of Hollywood can get back to work by the end of the month.

But, if the AMPTP walks away... well, SAG at this point doesn't even want to consider that possibility. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," my source told me. "We'll keep taking it day at a time."

SAG's statement tonight:
 

"Screen Actors Guild negotiating committee members presented the AMPTP with their response to the producers’ proposal made June 30. SAG committee members will meet Friday to discuss the AMPTP’s response. We will provide further guidance following that meeting."

The AMPTP representing the Big Media cartel issued the following statement after today's negotiations:

"Today's meeting demonstrated that SAG's Membership First contingent unreasonably expects to obtain more in these negotiations than directors, writers and other actors obtained during their negotiations. AMPTP has already achieved four major labor agreements this year with the DGA, WGA, AFTRA Network Code, and AFTRA Prime-Time.  Our final offer to SAG  members includes more than $250 million in additional compensation, important new media rights and protection for pension and health benefits. The refusal of SAG's Hollywood leadership to accept this offer is the latest in a series of actions by SAG leaders that, in our opinion, puts labor peace at risk. SAG's Hollywood leaders have already pursued a time-consuming, divisive, costly, and unsuccessful anti-AFTRA campaign. Any further delay in reaching a reasonable and comprehensive agreement does a disservice to the thousands of working people of our industry who are already being seriously harmed by the ever worsening de facto strike. We call upon SAG's Hollywood leaders to put the AMPTP's final offer to SAG members for ratification. The last thing we need is a long, hot summer of labor strife that puts even more pressure on a badly struggling economy and deprives audiences of the entertainment they clearly desire in such difficult times."