What's next for Lisa Cholodenko?

Adapting a popular children's book, according to Variety:

On the heels of earning an Oscar nom for co-writing The Kids Are All Right, Lisa Cholodenko is in negotiations to direct a live-action adaptation of the children's picture book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day for 20th Century Fox.

Fox could not be reached for comment.

Shawn Levy's 21 Laps banner is producing the high-concept family comedy with the Jim Henson Company. Levy and Dan Levine will produce for 21 Laps, while Lisa Henson and Jason Lust will produce for Henson Co.

Story follows a young boy who endures a frustrating day that begins with him waking up to find gum in his hair and ends with him threatening to move to Australia. Other characters include Alexander's two older brothers and their parents.

Box Office Actuals: April 1-3, 2011

Via Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, and other sources:

After cleaning out the cash drawers of North American movie theaters last night, most of the new releases from the April Fool's Day weekend were a bit over-estimated. "Hop" still ruled the weekend but fell just short of having the biggest opening weekend of the year - a success still held by "Rango", which started at $38.1 million as opposed to 'Hop"'s $37.5 million haul.

"Hop" looks to draw strong numbers next weekend with no true competition fighting for its dollar. Additionally, a strong second weekend may keep audiences coming back again and again through the Easter holiday and keep "Hop" near the top of the box office chart for much of this month. Although the film has been poorly received by critics, families and children are responding to it in a big way. "Hop" follows "Despicable Me" as Illumination Entertainment's second big success, perhaps making them a player for the foreseeable future in animated film.

"Source Code", starring Jake Gyllenhaal, opened at $14.8 million, less than the $15.0 projected start. The film, a smart and unique science-fiction/mystery/thriller directed by Duncan Jones (Moon), delivered another soft opening for Summit Entertainment. Many are reporting that the bankability of Jake Gyllenhaal is to blame for "Source Code" falling well short of expectations, but Summit consistently struggles to deliver big numbers. Strong word-of-mouth may keep this rolling through the week, but "Arthur", "Hanna", and "Your Highness" all will compete for much of the same audience that "Source Code" is hoping to retain.

FilmDistrict's first release, the horror film "Insidious", delivered a $13.2 million final tally. Shot for $1.5 million, the film is already an overwhelming success and challenged "Source Code"'s #2 ranking while appearing at approximately 500 less locations. The collaboration from director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell, who created the "Saw" franchise, marks a bit of a comeback for the duo. "Insidious" could arguably be one of the more impressive openings of the year thus far.

Elsewhere, "Sucker Punch" crashed and burned a staggering 68%, while the Weinstein Company's PG-13 recut of "The King's Speech" failed to galvanize audiences.

THE WEEKEND BREAKDOWN

#1 Film - "Hop", earned $37.5 million

Last Year's #1 Film at this time: "Clash Of The Titans", earned $61.2 million

Biggest Per Screen Average: "Hop", $10,490 at 3,579 locations ($37.5 million)

Worst Per Screen Average (50+ Sites): "Rabbit Hole", $199 at 61 locations ($12,132,
$2.2 cumulative)

Largest Increase (50+ Sites): "Win Win", +145.2%

Steepest Decline (50+ Sites): "Mars Needs Moms", -84.6%

Films Earning More Than $1m for the weekend: 15

Films Which Surpassed $100m: Yogi Bear

Films Which Surpassed Reported Budget This Weekend: Insidious.

The Top 40, with other notables, after the cut!

Box Office Bulletin: A "Hop"ping Good Time!

Via Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, and other sources:

Live action/animation hybrid "Hop" seems to have exceeded even the most optimistic of expectations by landing, if estimates hold, the largest opening weekend of 2011 with approximately $38.1 million in box office receipts.


NEW OPENINGS:

"Hop", made by Illumination Entertainment for $63 million, the studio who debuted with 2010's blockbuster, "Despicable Me", delivered the first true all-family film of 2011 and reaped the benefits. Despite the massive success of "Rango" and the well-attended "Gnomeo and Juliet", "Hop" looked like the year's first film which would engage everyone in the household and families responded. Despite most critics panning the film, distributor Universal Pictures won in the court of public opinion. Featuring voice work by Russell Brand, Hugh Laurie, and Hank Azaria, and James Marsden in the main live-action role, this Easter Bunny meets the Santa Claus storyline may elicit a sequel down the line. A second strong weekend looks promising as the next animated family film to come down the pike, the G-rated "Rio", lands on April 15.

A look at "Source Code", "Insidious", and a knockout "Sucker Punch" after the cut...

Box Office Actuals: March 25-27, 2011

Via Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, and other sources:

With actual receipts tabulated, it appears that the sequel "Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules" did take the weekend with a slightly underestimated $23.8 million haul. Besting the first film's $22.1 opening weekend, "...Rodrick Rules" has already turned a profit for 20th Century Fox. Undoubtedly the studio will be optioning another edition of Jeff Kinney's popular series, as this appears to be an appealing and growing film franchise.

"Sucker Punch" saw a minuscule uptick in actuals to $19.1 million for its opening frame. At best, the film looks to finish in the mid-$50 million range when all is said and done. Although comparisons can be made to 2010's "Kick-Ass", which opened with slightly more money but ended up short of $50 million, "Sucker Punch" appears to be all hype and no payoff for Warner Bros., who aggressively marketed the film as THE first must-see movie of the Spring. This is a major disappointment for Warner Bros. and director Zack Snyder, who seemingly could not withstand the vitriolic critical response and increasingly bad word-of-mouth which grew and grew through the weekend.

THE WEEKEND BREAKDOWN

#1 Film - "Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules:, earned $23.8 million

Last Year's #1 Film at this time: "How To Train Your Dragon", earned $43.7 million

Biggest Per Screen Average: "Win Win", $20,192 at 23 locations ($464,420)

Worst Per Screen Average (50+ Sites): "Drive Angry", $383 at 72 locations $27,549,
$10.6 cumulative)

Largest Increase (50+ Sites): "From Prada To Nada", +412.3%

Steepest Decline (50+ Sites): "Take Me Home Tonight", -68.4%

Films Earning More Than $1m for the weekend: 15

Films Which Surpassed $100m: Rango, Just Go With It

Films Which Surpassed Reported Budget This Weekend: Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick
Rules, Limitless, Battle: Los Angeles, The Adjustment Bureau.


The Top 40, with other notables, after the cut!
Bold signifies new openings or gains in audience from previous week:

Box Office Bulletin: "Wimpy Kid"'s withstand a "Sucker Punch"...

Via Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, and other sources:

In a second straight surprise at the box office, kids sequel, "Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules" won the race to #1, outlasting and defeating the much buzzed-about "Sucker Punch".


NEW OPENINGS:

After the surprising $64 million take of the first "...Wimpy Kid" film in March 2010, widely divergent opinions existed regarding the potential haul of this sequel. Critics were split almost 50/50 on the first offering and previews seemed to indicate the film as a bit of a "Wash-Rinse-Repeat" of the tone and feel of its predecessor. This now seems to have been a much more anticipated film than expected as its opening, at an estimated $24.4 million, bests the first film's $22 million opening. With "Hop" arriving next weekend, the film may plummet in its second weekend, but this opening undoubtedly signifies a third entry in the franchise will be given the greenlight, if 20th Century Fox has not done so already.

"Sucker Punch" analysis and more after the cut!