Previous posthumous Oscar nominees
Peter "I'm mad as hell" Finch's death didn't stop him from collecting an Oscar for his turn in Network in 1977.
Based on merit, sentiment and even hype, the late Heath Ledger will be Oscar-nominated as best supporting actor for his unsettling but dazzling performance as The Joker.
There is no guarantee that the expected nom, due Thursday, will lead to an Oscar win for Ledger, who died Jan. 22 when director Christopher Nolan was still editing The Dark Knight. In the past, six performers were posthumously nominated in an acting category.
Only one -- Peter Finch for Network (1976) -- won. We often accuse Academy members of overwrought sentimentality, but their record in this unique category suggests otherwise. They can be cold-blooded. Ledger's saga must play out.
However, it is ridiculously easy for audiences and voters to see how good Ledger is in complementing and completing Christian Bale's Batman. The Dark Knight is widely available on DVD. Delving into the past is more challenging. One of the six is still missing on DVD and most of the DVDs that do exist are older releases, so you might have to scrounge.
Jeanne Eagels in The Letter (1929)
Somewhat paralleling Ledger, the tragic Eagels was a highstrung insomniac, sublimely talented and died in 1929, aged 35, of a probable accidental overdose of sedatives.
However, she was also an alcoholic and heroin abuser. Cause of death was controversial. In life, despite notorious diva behaviour, she gave electrifying performances on stage and in this film. Her Oscar nom as best actress was never announced.
For the 1930 Oscars -- honouring films of 1929 -- only winners were made public. But the nomination list was later revealed. Eagels lost to Canadian Mary Pickford, who seduced the voting committee with a high tea and won for Coquette. Voting rules then changed. Sadly, The Letter is not available on DVD, although the film survives.
James Dean in East of Eden (1955) and Giant (1956)
The legendary Hollywood rebel and cult icon starred in only three films. He was nominated best actor for two, both posthumously. He famously died in a car accident in 1955, aged 24.
East of Eden last came to DVD in 2005 as a two-disc special edition. It is also in the 2005 box set, The Complete James Dean Collection. Giant also returned to DVD in 2005 and, obviously, is part of the same collection.
Spencer Tracy in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
The beloved star died of a heart attack in 1967, aged 67. He was nominated best actor nine times, winning twice. His longtime lover and co-star, Katharine Hepburn, won best actress for this film but Tracy lost this time. The film most recently came to DVD last February as a splendid 40th anniversary edition. It is also in the Stanley Kramer Film Collection.
Peter Finch in Network (1976)
The hell-raising Finch died of a heart attack in 1977, aged 64. As a posthumous best actor winner, he left behind his still potent "I'm mad as hell ..." speech. Network was last seen on DVD in a two-disc special edition from 2006.
Ralph Richardson in Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984)
Richardson, a knighted legend of British stage and screen, died of a stroke in 1983, aged 80. The delightful eccentric played the sixth earl of Greystoke in this Tarzan, earning only his second Oscar nom, both as best supporting actor, 35 years after his first. This Tarzan, no classic but worth a look, last came to DVD in 2004.
Massimo Troisi in Il Postino/The Postman (1994)
Troisi, an Italian, died of a heart attack in 1994, aged 41. In addition to his best actor nom, he was nominated as co-writer of Michael Radford's enchanting film. Il Postino was last seen alone on DVD in 2000. It is also in two different Miramax box sets released later.
Canadian town hopes to premiere 'Star Trek'
CALGARY - An attempt by residents of Vulcan to beam the world premiere of the new Star Trek movie into their small Alberta community remains in a holding pattern, but the captain of the mission is optimistic the quest will still be a success.
It may not be the planet of Vulcan, but the town of the same name, population 1,942, has already developed itself as a tourist attraction focusing on the birthplace of Star Trek's beloved Mr. Spock.
And after word that filming on director J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek movie was about to begin, Trekkies in the community southeast of Calgary began the process of attempting to go where no small Canadian town has gone before.
"I've been communicating with executives at Paramount Canada and they still haven't said no. We're optimistic but they also haven't said yes," acknowledged Dayna Dickens, Vulcan's tourism co-ordinator.
"We are developing a second proposal now which we're going to send down which outlines the logistics of what an event would look like if it were to happen here.
"My hope is when I send that on to Paramount they'll say, 'Gee, this offer's too good to pass up and let's give them the movie.' "
"Star Trek XI," which focuses on Mr. Spock and Capt. James T. Kirk's early years, is scheduled to premiere on Stardate 05-08-09, otherwise known as May 8.
Vulcan pulled out all the stops to try to gain the premiere or even a sneak peak of the movie event. It even launched a Facebook site which now boasts over 1,500 members.
"This is the voyage of a small town's quest for the 'Star Trek XI' movie premiere," begins a video on the Facebook site with the Star Trek theme playing in the background.
"Our Mission - to showcase our Star Trek spirit, to help Hollywood showcase the new Star Trek movie and to host a spectacular event that brings Spock home to Vulcan, Alta."
Supporters of the quest are equally passionate about the TV and movie franchise.
"I think we should have the event here in Vulcan, Alta. Then again, I am only one Klingon," wrote Jaymz Smith. "But one Klingon is a force to be reckoned with."
Already on the international radar for its famous name and for its homage to Star Trek, Vulcan held its first Vul-con convention in 1993. Two years later, the town unveiled its own Star Ship FX6-1995-A to welcome visitors. A plaque includes greetings written in English, Vulcan and Klingon.
Another sign welcomes visitors with the Vulcan motto "Live Long and Prosper." There's also a space-themed visitors centre and, in an odd combination of prairie tradition and outer space zeal, there's also the annual Spock Days Rodeo.
There were 16,693 people who made the trek to Vulcan in 2008, said Dickens - an increase of 19 per cent over 2007.
Dickens said the local community centre could easily be turned into a large movie theatre and parts of the town converted into a mini Star Trek convention. She realizes not many people have faith that the stars will end up in perfect alignment.
"Most people say you haven't got a chance and it's just crazy but my theory is as long as the senior vice-president of motion picture monitoring isn't saying no to me then I have to be optimistic," she said.
And with the release of what could be one of the summer's biggest blockbusters approaching at warp speed, the lack of word from the studio isn't a concern.
"When I first spoke to them a year ago they said they were considering the proposal but they did mention it might be something we wouldn't be able to find out about until four weeks out from the actual release date," Dickens said.
Series is Conchords' flight from reality
The best thing to come out of New Zealand since the kiwi is back for another session of surreal merriment.
Yes, Flight of the Conchords, the series that dares to ask the question "How clueless can two musicians be?" starts its second season tonight at 10 p.m. on HBO Canada.
When it first appeared in June 2007, viewers were initially caught off-guard and then instantly pleased by the show's desert-dry humour, endless self-mockery and deliciously tasteless music videos.
The saga of the feckless folk duo Flight of the Conchords and its inept attempts to make it in the Big Apple became a favourite of critics and viewers alike, winding up with four Emmy nominations in 2008.
There have probably never been two anti-heroes as decidedly anti-heroic as Jemaine and Bret, played – with marvellously coincidental symmetry – by Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie.
Clement's the one with the black-framed glasses and unruly hair that make him seem like a Down-Under cousin of Garrison Keillor, while McKenzie's wispy beard and waif-like physique would qualify him for a role as a slightly anorexic hobbit in Peter Jackson's next movie (he was actually in two Lord of the Rings movies).
They're on the phone from Los Angeles, cracking wise about the unlikely success of their determinedly quirky series.
"I think it's due to my winning personality," deadpans McKenzie.
"And to Bret's not wearing any pants," adds Clement.
McKenzie suggests he's not worried about whether the audience will take to the second season, "but I'm nervous I won't like it myself."
The gents guard the details of the show's minimal plot as though they were pictures of Jennifer Aniston's Brangelina voodoo doll, but they still let some details slip out.
"There's quite a few romantic moments," offers Clement. "I get involved with a few different women." Pause. "Nothing lasts, I'm afraid."
"Ah, yes," sighs McKenzie. "We tap into real pain all the time."
"Especially for our songs," adds Clement. "They're all about our true life moments. Girls breaking up with us, awkward social situations."
"When our feelings are being hurt," continues McKenzie, enjoying the masochistic duet they're improvising.
"Yeah, like when you don't get invited to the birthday party," Clement sighs.
That stops McKenzie short. "What birthday party?"
At moments like that it becomes clear these aren't guys playing roles, but a tightly knit pair that has been working on this off-the-wall synergy for many years.
Clement is 35, McKenzie 32. They met at Victoria University of Wellington, while working on an educational production called Body Play, about body consciousness and image issues.
"It had a cast of 25," remembers McKenzie, "and we were all dressed in black pants with Velcro-detachable penises."
The guffaw that escapes from Clement at this point suggests that his partner might be embroidering the truth, an element at the heart of the Conchords' comedy style.
They formed a comedy duo in 1998, but weren't an instant success. Far from it.
"I did one of those real-life advertisements where I had to wear a suit that was really a boat to publicize a local ferry service in New Zealand," McKenzie recalls. "I was walking up and down the street wearing it and I kept running into friends who were successful lawyers."
"My low point was a gig at a cricket club in New Zealand," offers Clement.
"Yeah," remembers McKenzie with a shiver. "We weren't playing any songs they knew and so they got angry. It was kind of a Blues Brothers moment."
"Bret finally decided to humour them and play `The Gambler' while I was packing," Clement laughs.
"Yeah," McKenzie concurs, "but I didn't know the lyrics and I could only remember one chord."
He then launches into a desperate, tuneless rendition of a man moaning, "You gotta know when to gamble, know when to ramble," and it's easy to see where the tacky songs that dot the Conchords' TV show today had their origins.
One of the highlights of Season 1 was their take on every saccharine French love ballad that haunted the scene in the late 1960s. Their version was a bit of nonsense entitled "Foux du Fafa," and it was accompanied by a video that was Jacques Demy's The Umbrellas of Cherbourg at its very worst.
"I had just come back from a holiday in France, so I was moved to write it," declares Clement with ersatz passion.
"And by then I had learned a second chord," adds McKenzie, "so we were good to go."
They started appearing on New Zealand TV in 2000, but it was their appearances at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2003 and 2004 that really jump-started their careers. "Antipodean comedy goes down well in the U.K.," McKenzie says.
"They're laughing at our accents," suggests Clement.
"Yeah," McKenzie agrees. "They already think we're stupid."
But, whether they wanted it or not, their star was in the ascendant.
An HBO special led to an appearance at the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin in 2006, which in turned spawned a mock documentary entitled Flight of the Conchords: A Texan Odyssey.
They next wound up on David Letterman's show, where their antics prompted HBO execs to wonder if they could sustain a comedy series.
"We like some TV comedy series," says McKenzie cautiously. "The Black Adder. Garry Shandling."
"But we never saw ourselves doing one week after week," Clement observes with horror. "We ran out of ideas after the first episode of Series 1. We just keep disguising the fact."
They even enjoy the trappings of their cultish fame. "Groupies now show up at our concerts and seem quite determined," Clement notes.
"And our fans give us home crafts that have our names on them," preens McKenzie. But the ultimate secret is something Clement gives away at the end of the conversation.
"Every horrible experience in the show is something we've been through in our lives 10 or 15 years ago and we just dig it up and relive it on TV."
Does this mean that the bad times are all over?
"Not at all," insists McKenzie. "We go back every night and compare notes about the awful things that happened to us during the day and we use it as material."
"And then," chuckles Clement, "we turn the rest into songs."
Preview of January/February 2009 album releases
NEW YORK (Billboard) – Here is a preview of some of the most noteworthy releases for the first two months of the year.
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN "WORKING ON A DREAM" (COLUMBIA, JAN. 27)
Reinvigorated by the rich pop that fueled 2006's "Magic" and the tour that followed, Bruce Springsteen, the E Street Band and producer Brendan O'Brien knocked out "Working on a Dream" in occasional sessions while gigging last year (some featuring late keyboardist Danny Federici and his son Jason). The title track and second single "My Lucky Day" hint that Springsteen and O'Brien are continuing along the big, upbeat path that would sound great live. But the opener "Outlaw Pete" is a slow-burning, eight-minute narrative, while "Good Eye" hints at the swamp-blues sounds Springsteen has occasionally explored on tour.
FRANZ FERDINAND "TONIGHT: FRANZ FERDINAND" (EPIC, JAN. 27)
Franz Ferdinand makes good on its stated desire to produce a "dirty pop" album with "rhythm- and dance-based" songs on its third long-player. Throughout, the Scottish band lets its funky bass lines handle much of the heavy lifting, decorating them with vintage synth melodies straight out of the Genesis or Sparks playbooks. Elsewhere, the band's cold grooves nod to Wire, Can and "Miss You"-era Rolling Stones. Franz's first two albums "were very jerky," frontman Alex Kapranos says. "This one is much more of a swinger."
50 CENT "BEFORE I SELF DESTRUCT" (SHADY/INTERSCOPE, FEB. 3)
Originally due late last year, 50 Cent's latest was bumped to the first quarter to allow him more time to hone tracks with longtime mates Eminem and Dr. Dre. "I have a couple of tracks on there with him. It's sick," Eminem says. Dr. Dre's fingerprints are all over the new single "I Get It In." "Before I Self Destruct" will be bundled with a full-length feature film of the same name, in which 50 plays a budding basketball star who becomes a criminal after his mother's murder.
THE FRAY "THE FRAY" (EPIC, FEB. 3)
Two and a half years after a key placement on ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" helped turn the Fray into a platinum star, the band used another high-profile partnership with the network to introduce the new single "You Found Me" in late November. The track, which has already sold 632,000 downloads, according to Nielsen SoundScan, stemmed from crises among friends and family that prompted singer Isaac Slade to confront the age-old question of why bad things happen to good people. The sound of "The Fray" is "a little more extreme than the last record," Slade says. "It definitely spreads the spectrum a little bit."
DIERKS BENTLEY "FEEL THAT FIRE" (CAPITOL NASHVILLE, FEB. 3)
"I want something that needs to be on someone's mantle," Dierks Bentley says of his goal for "Feel That Fire." "I have a bunch of U2 CDs, and each one has its own little place; it's not just pump out another record and say, 'All right, let's get back to the bus.'" The country artist, who kept his circle of co-writers close on past albums, expanded his horizons by writing with Rodney Crowell, Rivers Rutherford, and Brad and Brett Warren, among others. "It's not only a chance to write songs, but it's big-brother mentoring, getting to ask questions about life," he says. "It's therapy to some point."
THE BAD PLUS "FOR ALL I CARE" (HEADS UP, FEB. 3)
The jazz trio offers more unique interpretations of pop and rock classics on an album that also features vocals for the first time (from Wendy Lewis). Among the covers given the Bad Plus treatment this time around are Nirvana's "Lithium," the Bee Gees' "How Deep Is Your Love," Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb," Heart's "Barracuda" and Yes' "Long Distance Runaround." The album also includes interpretations of pieces by classical composers Igor Stravinsky, Gyorgi Ligeti and Milton Babbitt.
LILY ALLEN "IT'S NOT ME, IT'S YOU" (CAPITOL, FEB. 10)
Lily Allen's sophomore album retains the playful spirit of her star-making 2007 debut, "Alright, Still," but relocates her from too-cool-for-school hipster pop to somewhere between the dance floor and the real world. Despite songs about God and George W. Bush, it's still strong, uncontrived pop music. And it sounds stuffed with hits, starting with the lead track, "The Fear." "I did a retro thing last time," Allen says. "And since I did that, a lot of other people did it too. I wanted to separate myself from the group and move forward. People think I've intentionally done something more serious, but I haven't."
DAN AUERBACH "KEEP IT HID" (NONESUCH, FEB. 10)
The Black Keys vocalist/guitarist is taking time off from his primary band to release and tour behind this solo debut, which he admits is "all over the map. Some of them sound like they could be Black Keys songs. But some songs are just acoustic guitar. There's some real dark tunes and some psychedelic rumbas." The album runs the gamut from the sparse, drum-less opener, "Trouble Weighs a Ton," and the genial acoustic closer, "Goin' Home," to raw, swaggering rockers.
THE LONELY ISLAND "INCREDIBAD" (UNIVERSAL REPUBLIC, FEB. 10)
The comedy team consisting of "Saturday Night Live" star Andy Samberg and writers Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer draws from its sizable catalog of Internet smash hits for its major-label debut, including "Dick in a Box" with Justin Timberlake, "Iran So Far" with Maroon 5's Adam Levine and "Lazy Sunday." Also expected to appear are "I'm on a Boat" with T-Pain, "Sax Man" with Jack Black, "Boombox" with the Strokes' Julian Casablancas and "Dream Girl" with Norah Jones.
TWO TONGUES "TWO TONGUES" (VAGRANT, FEB. 10)
Saves the Day frontman Chris Conley and Say Anything mastermind Max Bemis join forces on this project, which Bemis says he "wanted to be a little more poetic and little bit less completely verbose." The album reflects the grandiose pop/punk and emo sounds of both bands and their influences, which Bemis cites as "Sunny Day Real Estate, Smashing Pumpkins and Beatles-y with a Britpop element. Balance is very much so what the plot of the album is about. It's really about me and Chris' friendship and how that represents anybody's friendship, or anybody's relationship."
MORRISSEY "YEARS OF REFUSAL" (ATTACK/LOST HIGHWAY, FEB. 17)
The first few songs on "Refusal" suggest a more rock-oriented effort in the style of 1992's "Your Arsenal," including "All You Need Is Me" and the fired-up "Something Is Squeezing My Skull." On "Mama Lay Softly on the Riverbed," Morrissey sounds vengeful. The curious "When Last I Spoke to Carol" seems influenced by the cinematic sound of Ennio Morricone, while "It's Not Your Birthday Anymore" experiments with samples.
VARIOUS ARTISTS "DARK WAS THE NIGHT" (BEGGARS BANQUET, FEB. 17)
Some of the biggest names in independent music banded together to record exclusive songs for this double-disc album, whose proceeds will benefit the Red Hot organization's work with AIDS research. In the works since 2006, the project was curated by the National's Aaron and Bryce Dessner. The lineup includes Spoon, Arcade Fire, Yo La Tengo, the New Pornographers, Cat Power, My Morning Jacket and Iron & Wine. "Dark Was the Night" is also packed with intriguing collaborations, including Feist with Ben Gibbard and Grizzly Bear, Dirty Projectors with David Byrne, Aaron Dessner with Bon Iver, and Bryce Dessner with Antony.
... AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD "THE CENTURY OF SELF" (RICHTER SCALE/JUSTICE, FEB. 17)
The veteran Texas rock band is back on indie turf after three albums for Interscope, and on "The Century of Self," it has rediscovered the dark, punishing power of its best material. "Pictures of an Only Child" begins as a subdued wash of sound before bursting into a loud, chugging chorus, and the bracing "Far Pavilions" has shouted counterpoint vocals from drummer Jason Reece. "On the last two albums, we were really meticulous, recording to click tracks and doing overdubs," Keely says. "This time, we threw all that out. We learned the songs and all tracked live."
JEREMY ENIGK "OK BEAR" (LEWIS HOLLOW, FEBRUARY)
Jeremy Enigk returns to the heavier rock sound of Sunny Day Real Estate on his third solo album, recorded outside Barcelona with a group of musicians introduced to Enigk by a mutual friend from Seattle. "These guys are Sunny Day Real Estate fans, and the moment they got their hands on my songs, whether they were mellow or not, they turned them into heavy rockers," Enigk says. Look for driving tracks like "Late of Camera" and "Find Idea," alongside "April Storm" ("That's on a Ryan Adams/'Love Is Hell'-type of kick," Enigk says) and the Gram Parsons-inspired "Same Side Imaginary."
Obamas, Bidens enjoy Lincoln Memorial concert
Reuters WASHINGTON – Under the gaze of Abraham Lincoln's statue, Bruce Springsteen and a red-robed gospel choir kicked off a spirited preinaugural concert Sunday before tens of thousands on the National Mall.
The crowd erupted in cheers when Obama and his wife, Michelle, arrived, walking down the steps of the memorial, and kept applauding for the high-energy Springsteen act and the performances that followed.
There was no red carpet, but the event had the feel of a Hollywood awards ceremony, with stars taking the stage to praise, serenade, and even impersonate the next president.
Performers including Bono, Beyonce and James Taylor were on the bill.
A crowd expected to reach up to a half-million was stretched past the reflecting pool separating the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.
Obama and his wife and Vice President-elect Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, sat behind bullet-proof glass near the stage erected on the steps of the memorial.
The concert began with Springsteen, dressed in black, singing "The Rising," with the help of the choir, taking a song best known as a call to action following the 2001 terror attacks and using it to usher in a new era in American politics.
Denzel Washington was the first celebrity to speak, telling the crowd, "we are all in this together."
Another speaker was actor Tom Hanks, who as Forrest Gump famously gave a speech at the monument steps and jumped into the reflecting pool. This time, he appeared in a dark suit and read a somber tribute to Abraham Lincoln.
Jamie Foxx brought many in the crowd — and the Obamas — to their feet by repeatedly urging those from Chicago to make some noise: "Chi-town, stand up!" he demanded.
Foxx then launched into a quick impersonation of the president-elect.
Joe Biden told the crowd: "Look around you. Look at the grace and grandeur that surrounds us and you'll see the work of American hands."
The crowd threw their hands up for Garth Brooks' thumping rendition of "Shout!" supported by a massive choir wearing red and blue jackets against the cold.
The crowd, including Obama and Biden, were writhing when Stevie Wonder, Usher, and Shakira pumped out Wonder's classic "Higher Ground."
Sheryl Crow and will.i.am performed "One Love," and golf great Tiger Woods, the son of a military man, urged the audience to remember the sacrifices of military families.
The event began with a convocation by the Right Rev. Gene Robinson, who asked the crowd to pray for "understanding that our president is a human being and not a messiah."
'Paul Blart: Mall Cop' nabs top box office spot
Reuters LOS ANGELES – Kevin James bumbles and stumbles to take down the bad guys, but his "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" had no trouble nabbing the top spot at the box office this weekend.
The PG-rated comedy, starring James as a portly shopping center security guard who tries to foil a bank heist, made $33.8 million in its first three days and is expected to reach $40 million over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend.
That far surpasses expectations, said Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution for Sony, which released the movie.
"We had a lot of screenings as well as tracking that was good on it. We were hopeful we could do in the range of $25 million for four days and that would have been a terrific result for us. But now it looks like we're going to do $40 million for four days, and that is just, like, a 'wow' number," Bruer said Sunday. "It totally speaks to just how much audiences love Kevin James, No. 1, and how hard he worked to promote this film."
After proving his value as a sidekick to Will Smith in "Hitch" and Adam Sandler in "I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry," James shows here he can also be a reliable leading man, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office tracker Media by Numbers.
"In these tough, recession-laden times, you'd think people wouldn't want a movie that's based around a mall, but they totally do," Dergarabedian said. "Kevin James has that everyman quality. People relate to him."
Last week's No. 1 movie, "Gran Torino," dropped to second place but only by 25 percent. The Warner Bros. drama, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood as a bigot who becomes a reluctant neighborhood hero, made $22.2 million this weekend for a cumulative gross of $73.2 million.
Among other new releases, the Lionsgate horror flick "My Bloody Valentine 3-D" opened at the No. 3 spot with $21.9 million.
Fourth was "Notorious," about slain rapper Notorious B.I.G., which made $21.5 million. That's the biggest opening ever for Fox Searchlight, which previously released such critical darlings and crowd-pleasers as "Juno" and "Little Miss Sunshine."
"It's a very high quality film, and it's a compelling look at a compelling cultural icon who, like many cultural icons, left way too early but left an indelible mark on society," said Chris Aronson, senior vice president of domestic distribution for 20th Century Fox.
The week's other new wide release, the Paramount family comedy "Hotel for Dogs," opened at No. 5 with $17.7 million. Over at Paramount Vantage, "Defiance," based on the true story of Jews who survived the Holocaust by forming a community in the forests of Belarus, did well in its nationwide expansion. The movie starring Daniel Craig and Liev Schreiber made $9.8 million to reach the No. 8 spot.
The big winner at last weekend's Golden Globes, "Slumdog Millionaire," crept into the No. 10 spot with $5.9 million. The Fox Searchlight drama about a teen who rises from the slums of Mumbai to become a game show champion won awards for best picture, director (Danny Boyle), screenplay and original score.
Now playing in limited release in 582 theaters, "Slumdog" will expand to more than 1,200 theaters next weekend following Thursday's Academy Award nominations. It's made a total of $42.7 million in 10 weeks.
"You can see the impact of the Golden Globe winnings and, also, people are just discovering this film so we're able to keep growing our audience," said Richard Shamban, vice president of theatrical distribution for Fox Searchlight.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Tuesday.
1. "Paul Blart: Mall Cop," $33.8 million.
2. "Gran Torino," $22.2 million.
3. "My Bloody Valentine 3-D," $21.9 million.
4. "Notorious," $21.5 million.
5. "Hotel for Dogs," $17.7 million.
6. "Bride Wars," $11.75 million.
7. "The Unborn," $9.8 million.
8. "Defiance," $9.2 million.
9. "Marley & Me," $6.3 million.
10. "Slumdog Millionaire," $5.9 million.