Movie Projector: ‘Up’ to soar past $60 million; ‘Drag Me to Hell’ to open solidly

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The only question for Disney/Pixar’s ‘Up’ is how far its opening weekend gross will fly. The bar is pretty high, given that ‘Wall-E’ opened at $63.1 million last summer on its way to taking in $224 million in domestic box office.

Rival studios are anticipating that ‘Up’ could hit $65 million. Tracking figures are playing it safer, projecting that ‘Up’ will open somewhere between Pixar’s ‘Ratatouille’ ($47 million) and ‘Wall-E.’ That’s like saying the Lakers will score between 80 and 100 points in their next game.

With a storyline about an old man on the verge of losing his home who responds by filling his house with balloons and flying away, there have been questions about whether young children will embrace the film. But any impact from that will probably be felt after the opening weekend.

The other big opening this weekend -- Sam Raimi’s horror film ‘Drag Me to Hell’ -- isn’t expected to be a threat to ‘Up,’ but should be a solid performer in its own right. The movie, which is distributed by Universal, is targeting an adult audience. Raimi has a strong following and if history is any guide, the movie should open north of $20 million. Last summer’s horror flick ‘The Strangers’ opened at $21 million.

The other big question for the weekend is how ‘Terminator Salvation’ will hold up. The Warner Bros. movie opened to a disappointing $51.9 million over Memorial Day weekend. Star Christian Bale proved capable of being the Dark Knight, but that franchise seems immune to who graces the costume. Apparently that’s not the case with ‘Terminator.’

-- Joe Flint

Photo credits: ‘Up,’ Disney/Pixar. ‘Drag Me to Hell,’ Universal Pictures.