Tuesday 8 May 2012

"The Avengers" Conquer Box Office with $207.4 Million Debut

0222_avengers_single
 "The Avengers" has extended its box-office superpowers with a record $207.4 million opening weekend domestically, an even bigger start than originally projected.

Final figures from distributor Disney on Monday put the film's debut $7.1 million higher than the studio had estimated a day earlier.

With a superstar cast, great reviews and glowing word of mouth from fans, "The Avengers" bounded past the previous record of $169.2 million set by last year's "Harry Potter" finale.

The Marvel Comics adaptation also has taken in $447.4 million overseas since it started rolling out in international markets a week earlier. That brings its worldwide total to $654.8 million in just 12 days.

The film drew in comic-book fans and general audiences alike, with the audience evenly split between those over and under 25, according to Disney. Teens packed theaters, couples came to see it as a date movie, and parents with children made it a family outing.

"Fans, non-fans, parents, non-parents. Any kind of descriptor you can come up with, people are embracing this film," said Dave Hollis, Disney's head of distribution.

Over the same first weekend of May 10 years earlier, "Spider-Man" rocked Hollywood with a $114.8 million debut, the first movie ever to open with more than $100 million in a single weekend.
"It was unthinkable. People thought, `Wow, a blockbuster film should do $100 million in its whole run, not just opening weekend,'" said Paul Dergarabedian, analyst for box-office tracker Hollywood.com. "The $200 million opening weekend is something I didn't think I would ever see, or something I wouldn't see until after I retired."
But since summer 2002, other blockbusters have nudged opening-weekend records higher and higher: 2006's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" with $135.6 million; 2007's"Spider-Man 3" with $151.1 million; 2008's "The Dark Knight" with $158.4 million; and finally, last summer's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2."

"The Avengers" leaped beyond the "Potter" finale with a long, shrewd buildup by Marvel Studios, which had tucked teasers for its eventual superhero ensemble tale into solo films such as "Iron Man," "Thor" and "Captain America" for years.
Directed by Joss Whedon, who has been reading "The Avengers" comics since he was a boy, the film features Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Chris Evans as Captain America and Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye.
The sum of all of those superheroes proved more than the parts. "The Avengers" already has surpassed the worldwide box-office totals for "Iron Man," "Iron Man 2," "Thor" and "Captain America" in their entire runs.

Rapper 50 Cent's Longtime Girlfriend . . . IS PREGNANT!!! (Pics)

: MediaTakeOut.com got word that rapper 50 Cent's GIRLFRIEND actress Daphne Joy is pregnant. We can not onfirm it 100%, but the below pics seem to STRONGLY suggest that she is. In addition to the pics, we have a person ON THE GROUND who tells us that Daphne DID NOT DRINK AT ALL at Floyd Mayweather's VICTORY PARTY Saturday night.
And before y'all start jumping to conclusions . . . his GF Daphne AIN'T NO JUMPOFF. To the best of our knowledge she's been FAITHFULLY dating 50 for the last year.
So congrats to 50 and Daphne.



WHAT Are They Wearing?!









Africa Fashion Week London 2012 Casting


KIM KARDASHIAN Adds $325k Ferrari to MILLION DOLLAR Car Collection

Kim Kardashian Ferrari
Kim Kardashian
 just dropped a cool $325,000 on a pimped out new Ferrari, I learned … and it may only be the SECOND most expensive ride in her MILLION DOLLAR auto collection.
 
The reality star picked up the super-customized, super-rare 458 Italia from Plantinum Motorsport in L.A. earlier this week ... the same place where she got that famous fleet of Phantoms for her wedding. 
Kim’s new lightning fast car is painted white – which is shocking, ‘cause she typically prefers black speedsters. 

Earlier this year, Kim picked up a BALLER customized Rolls Royce Ghost. It’s unclear how much she paid for that ride, but they usually START at $255k. 

Kim also has a “super-charged” $115k Range Rover in her garage – along with several other cars she likes to drive when she doesn’t feel like showing off.

KIM KARDASHIAN Rollin' On Kanye's Dubs

Kim Kardashian in a car belonging to Kanye WestKanye West MUST be getting serious with Kim Kardashian -- he's letting her drive his $500,000 whip in L.A. while he's in NYC.

We got this pic of Kim driving Kanye's Mercedes SLR McLaren this AM to Barry's Boot Camp in Sherman Oaks. 
Kim's family just signed a $40-plus million deal with E! for their reality shows, so she could probably afford to buy her own.
BTW, Kim owns a Range Rover, a Ferrari, a Bentley ... oh, and a Rolls Royce Ghost ... but it's way more fun to drive your boyfriend's car.


Met Gala: Best & Worst Outfits from the Past!