This summer, Hollywood is hoping that good things come in threes. From May's Spider-Man 3 to August's Rush Hour 3, a handful of three-quels are coming soon to a theater near you. The one-two-three punch of Spider-Man 3, Shrek the Third and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End is likely to pack such a wallop that previous May box-office records will topple.
A number of other familiar faces are back in action, from the Harry Potter kids and the Danny Ocean gang to Jason Bourne and Die Hard's John McClane. Things are shaping up for (the industry) to have its first $4 billion summer," predicts Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros. "Looking at the summer lineup, I count 16 or 17 movies with a potential to each make more than $100 million.
" Previously, Hollywood enjoyed its best year in 2004, when grosses hit $3.8 billion dollars. A 2005 slump -- or "a hiccup on the assembly line," as box-office analyst Brandon Gray describes it -- can be credited to a lack of see-worthy films.
In 2006, the yearly U.S. box office revenue rose 5.
5 percent. As is the new tradition, the summer lineup is heavily frontloaded with blockbuster-wannabes, a fact that has caused some concern for Pirates director Gore Verbinski. He recently grumbled that there wasn't enough breathing space between the May heavyhitters.
Is it possible the big movies will steal each other's thunder? "Not at all," says Fellman. "The marketplace has the ability to expand.
Movies are contagious. If you see something good, you want to see something else that's good. And with multiplexes showing movies on four or five screens, there's enough seats to accommodate a lot of folks.
" Gray, who runs the box-office tracking Web site boxofficemojo.com, picks Spider-Man 3 as the likely box-office champ of the season. "There's a lot of pent-up desire there," notes Gray.
"It's been three years since Spider-Man 2 and only 10 months since the last Pirates movie. I don't think there's the same anticipation level for the third Pirates as there is for the third Spider-Man." If Spider-Man disappoints, Shrek the Third is likely to pick up the slack.
"There's a lot of fun stuff for kids, but there's also plenty of humor for adults, too," notes Justin Timberlake, who plays King Artie in the film. If you're not into third -- or fourth and fifth -- helpings, pay special attention to the anti-romantic comedy Knocked Up, the cross-dressing musical Hairspray, the long-anticipated Simpsons Movie and Pixar's Ratatouille. All are expected to cross the finish line with at least $100 million in their pockets.
Jockeying for sleeper status in 2007: No Reservations with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart, Licence To Wed with Mandy Moore and The Office's John Krasinski, and I Now Pronounce You Chuck Larry, the latest from Adam Sandler and Kevin James. Basics: What a web Spidey (Tobey Maguire) has to untangle. Smug over his status as a local celebrity, the sticky crime-fighter has to deal with Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), Venom (Topher Grace) and his own power-mad alter ego.
Even his relationship with Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) suffers after he finds himself drawn to Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard). Buzz: Spider-Man gets what's been called "his Darth Vader moment." Who doesn't want to see that?
Fun Fact: For a scene in which Peter trips the light fantastic, Maguire went out of his way to be as dorky as possible. Basics: When Shrek's father-in-law passes away, the big green guy has to find an heir to the throne or get stuck with the job himself. With the help of Puss N Boots (Antonio Banderas) and Donkey (Eddie Murphy), he hopes to foist the crown onto Fiona's (Cameron Diaz) cousin Artie (Justin Timberlake), a high schooler with self-image issues.
Fun Fact: Even though Timberlake has brought the sexy back to pop music, he claims he had no trouble identifying with the awkward Artie. "Look, I'm a Discovery Channel geek who is hooked on Planet Earth," he says. Basics: Will (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) and Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) team up to free Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) from the guts of a giant sea monster.
Chow Yun-Fat joins the cast as crafty pirate Sao Feng. Buzz: Despite being 2006's most successful film, Pirates 2 wasn't as loved as the first film. Pirates 3 might not be able to plunder quite as much box office booty.
Fun Fact: Keith Richards, who inspired Depp's portrayal, joins the cast as Sparrow's frequently-soused daddy. Basics: For his first film since The 40 Year Old Virgin, writer/director Judd Apatow ponders the plight of a computer analyst (Seth Rogen) and a reporter (Katherine Heigl) whose one-night stand has some sticky consequences. Basics: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Elliot Gould, Don Cheadle and Bernie Mac return for another heist.
This time around, their target is Vegas hotelier Al Pacino, a mob-connected crook who makes the mistake of double-crossing one of the gang. Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta-Jones are out, Ellen Barkin is in. Fun Fact: Clooney is the first to admit that Ocean's 12 was "a stiff.
" So, how did he and director Stephen Soderbergh remedy the situation? They made 13 all about revenge. Basics: For the third sequel to Die Hard, John McClane (Bruce Willis) goes after a cyber-terrorist (Timothy Olyphant).
Justin Long -- the guy from the Apple ads -- is McClane's resident computer geek. Fun Fact: Director Len Wiseman has Willis' daughters to thank for his job. On their recommendation, Willis took a look at Wiseman's Underworld: Evolution and came away a big fan.
Basics: On her deathbed, a woman (Vanessa Redgrave) remembers her one true love. The dream cast includes Claire Danes, Meryl Streep, Toni Collette, Glenn Close and Patrick Wilson. Buzz: It's too somber to do Devil Wears Prada numbers but with this lineup of actors it has to be, at the very least, interesting.
Buzz: Director Michael Bay's last entry -- The Island -- tanked but this one is likely to re-instate him as the king of big, noisy action films. Fun Fact: LaBeouf grooved on working with Bay (Armageddon) -- or at least we think he did. Asked what it was like to be directed by the notoriously demanding filmmaker, La Beouf says, "Michael goes out of his way to put you in harm's way so that you can respond accordingly.
" Basics: In the fifth film in the series, Harry takes on the new Dark Arts prof (Imelda Staunton), tussles with Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and gets a kiss from sweetie Cho Chung (Katie Leung). Fun Fact: Radcliffe calls Staunton's Dolores Umbridge "a cross between Margaret Thatcher and Freddy Kruger." Basics: The plot is being kept under wraps, but expect Homer to "save the world from a catastrophe he himself created.
" Fun Fact: There are 94 speaking roles in the film, which means loads of fan favorites will make cameo appearances. Basics: Everyone's favorite amnesiac spy (Matt Damon) travels to Moscow, Paris, London and New York City in search of the real Jason Bourne while, at the same time, trying to steer clear of cops, feds and Interpol agents. Julia Stiles and Joan Allen return alongside newbies David Strathairn, Paddy Considine and Edgar Ramirez.
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