Potter 5 debut date changed

Thursday, May 31, 2007 -

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix has been moved up two days for a new debut of July 11th, landing it oddly on a Wednesday. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if this had something to do with the massive box office recordings that have been set and repeatedly smashed as each successive tent pole film comes out this summer. Spider-Man 3, Shrek 3, Pirates 3, ... looks like daddy is home, with Potter 5 looking to maximize its opening earnings by squeezing more weekdays into the equation before the weekend hits.

The following Monday after the opening weekend and pretty much the entire workweek drops enormously, so I wonder if we're seeing a trend where Friday is being shunned for an eventual Tuesday, or even a Monday opening. Seems strange at first, but it makes sense after you think about it.

The Stateside launch of "The Order of the Phoenix" will now match up with the first foreign openings in such markets as Belgium and France. The previous four pics have combined for worldwide grosses of more than $3.5 billion, with two-thirds of that from overseas markets.

"The Order of the Phoenix" will open a week before J.K. Rowling's final book in the series, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" goes into bookstores on July 21. The six Potter books have sold more than 325 million copies worldwide.

You know, I haven't read any of these books or seen any of the movies yet. Maybe I should wait until the entire series is done, then watch it all at once so I can marvel at how the actors seem to age a few years in between the time I take a leak, get some nachos, and pop the next disc into the DVD player.

Fascinating.

Topics: Film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter

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