The world has paused briefly for the Cannes Film Festival, but sorry, it has not stopped the tentpole studio gears from churning. Warner Bros., in particular, is not sleeping. They have dropped three new dates on an unsuspecting audience.
First up is Tim Burton and Johnny Depp‘s 400th collaboration for the remake of the popular late ’60s/early ’70s vampire TV series, “Dark Shadows.” Co-starring Helena Bonham Carter, Chloe Moretz, Eva Green, Michelle Pfeiffer and more, it will be whimsical, it will be dark in an unthreatening manner, it will feature the wonderfully clown-like music of Sir Danny Elfman and it will likely not surprise you when it arrives in theaters on May 11, 2012.
Next up, the political comedy “Southern Rivals” which appears to be now just called “Rivals.” Directed by Jay Roach (“Austin Powers“) and starring comedians Zach Galifianakis and Will Ferrell , the story centers on two politicians jockeying for position in a small congressional district in South Carolina. It’s now dated for August 10, 2012, which is a few months earlier than the 2012 election season delivery that was promised, but perhaps they want to make an early impact. And/or we thought they meant fall 2012.
The company has also dated the Brendan Fraser Dwayne Johnson vehicle, “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island”, for a January 27, 2012 bow (gee, surprising where that one landed). And meanwhile, Lionsgate has slotted the pregnancy comedy, “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” starring Cameron Diaz, for a May 11, 2012 release.
Other recent release date shifts or changes that we haven’t noted include Todd Phillips‘ low-budget comedy “Project X” getting bounced out of the November 2011 season into a TBD 2012 spot, which doesn’t bode that well for that once buzzed-about comedy, and “The Cold Light of Day” starring the new “Superman” Henry Cavill being pushed from September 2011 to April 6, 2012. And finally, Lars Von Trier‘s “Melancholia” has been dated by Magnolia for a November 4th, 2011 release and “Gone,” the Summit Entertainment thriller starring Amanda Seyfried, will land in theaters on February 24, 2012. That’s all for now. [BOM]