'Fast Five' takes checkered flag at box office

AFP, LOS ANGELES, May 2: The first big budget film of the summer season, "Fast Five," broke new records as it scored $83.6 million in its first weekend in theaters, industry estimates showed Sunday.

Ticket sales for the fifth volume in the high-speed car chase series marked the biggest premiere for any film so far this year, largely outpacing other new films this week.

Coming-of-age flick "Prom" only got $5 million for its cast of young and largely unknown actors, while moviegoers were similarly unimpressed by "Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil," a 3-D cartoon which opened with $4.1 million, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Movie ticket sales have been soft this year, reflecting the impact of a deep recession, the worst in the United States since the 1930s.

Paul Walker and Vin Diesel were among "Fast" veterans who reunited for the fifth edition in the series, with Rio de Janeiro as a setting this time.

The "Hoodwinked" sequel's poor showing may owe to the continued popularity of two other 3-D animated family films: tropical bird comedy "Rio," in second place with $14.4 million, and 9th place finisher "Hop," an Easter romp that scored $2.6 million in its fifth week on the big screen.

"Rio" previously roosted atop the box office for two consecutive weeks. The cartoon about pet macaw Blu voiced by "Social Network" star Jesse Eisenberg bolts from chilly climes to Brazil's beaches.

"Hop," a real-action-animation hybrid about the wayward son of the Easter Bunny, had also spent two weeks at the top.

In fourth place was the latest comedic offering from Tyler Perry, the critically-panned "Madea's Big Happy Family," which raked in $10.1 million in its second weekend.

Depression-era romance "Water for Elephants," starring British heartthrob Robert Pattinson and Oscar-winner Reese Witherspoon, took in $9.1 million to land in fourth.

The weekend box office hit list put "Soul Surfer" in the seventh spot with $3.3 million, telling the true story of church-going teen surfer Bethany Hamilton (played by AnnaSophia Robb), who returned to the ocean after losing an arm in a shark attack.

Horror flick "Insidious," about a family in a haunted house, picked up $2.7 million in eighth.

Rounding out the top 10 for a second week in a row was Jake Gyllenhaal's acclaimed sci-fi thriller "Source Code," about a government experiment to find the bomber of a commuter train, which took $2.5 million.

Kid Rock accepts NAACP award in Detroit

AP, DETROIT, May 2: Grammy-nominated artist Kid Rock told nearly 10,000 people at the Detroit NAACP branch's annual fundraising dinner that his use of the Confederate flag during on-stage performances has nothing to do with how he feels about blacks.

"I love America. I love Detroit, and I love black people," the musician said Sunday night during the annual Fight for Freedom Fund dinner at Cobo Center.

Kid Rock, whose real name is Robert Ritchie, used the event to diffuse criticism aimed at the Detroit NAACP branch which honored him with its Great Expectations Award.

The Macomb County, Mich., native said his use of the flag derives from a popular song by legendary Southern rock group Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Earlier, a group of about 50 people picketed outside Cobo Center in protest of the decision to honor Ritchie. The group also burned a replica of the flag, considered a symbol of racism and oppression to blacks in the South. It was carried by secessionist Southern troops in the American Civil War.

The dinner is the largest fundraiser for the Detroit NAACP branch. Civil rights pioneer John Lewis gave the dinner's keynote speech.

Others also were honored Sunday night, but most of the attention was focused on Ritchie.

Detroit NAACP President Wendell Anthony said Ritchie was being honored for his advocacy of the city.

"We're not lifting up the flag," Anthony said earlier Sunday. "We're lifting up a gentleman who has worked very hard to be a booster for Detroit."

From the time it was first announced, the choice of Kid Rock as honoree has been criticized by some who said the use of the Confederate flag conflicts with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's message.

"It stands for hatred, bigotry, racism, murder," Detroit political consultant Adolph Mongo said of the flag. "Every bigot and racist in this country loves that flag."

Mongo helped ignite the flag about 5 p.m. It took several attempts with a cigarette lighter before the flag caught fire to chants of, "Burn, baby, burn."

The Confederate flag symbolizes racial oppression, but also pride in the South for many Southerners, said Kirk Mayes, 35, of Detroit.

It "really is a symbol of the past," Mayes said after attending the dinner. "Today, it's about moving forward. We have to kind of be open to the spirit of forgiving. Not embracing its symbolism of hatred, but recognizing its relevance."

Ritchie, who appeared at the event with his son, received loud applause when he was introduced and again when he stood to accept the award.

He called the controversy surrounding his use of the Confederate flag a "fiasco."

"I've never flown that flag with any hate in my heart. Not one ounce," Ritchie said before announcing $50,000 in donations from his foundation to Detroit recreation centers, a conservancy on the city's Belle Isle, a youth theater group, a youth training agency and Habitat for Humanity.

Ritchie met recently with Detroit Mayor Dave Bing and discussed how he could help the city, mayoral spokeswoman Karen Dumas said Sunday night.

Ritchie also announced that his foundation would be donating $50,000 to storm relief efforts in tornado-ravaged states.

"That's what Detroit city is all about," he said. "We're fortunate enough that we haven't been touched by Mother Nature like our friends in the South have."

His family-run foundation is very active in the Detroit area. It has supported the Detroit-based Karmanos Cancer Institute's research and patient care, where Ritchie's donations have included money, guitars and even an invitation to dinner — to the highest bidder.

Through his "Made in Detroit" apparel line, Ritchie recently established the Made in Detroit Endowed Scholarship to help offset tuition costs of Wayne State University students from throughout southeastern Michigan who are selected for their academic achievements and limited financial resources.

Vanessa Hudgens to play Fraser's daughter in drama

Reuters, LOS ANGELES, May 2: Former "High School Musical" starlet Vanessa Hudgens is set to play a pregnant, homeless teen "Gimme Shelter," an indie drama that will also star Brendan Fraser as her father.

Hudgens' character flees her abusive mother and seeks out her biological father. He first takes her in but then throws her out when she refuses to abort her child. Fraser's character fathered her as a result of a youthful fling.

Ron Krauss is writing and directing the picture, which is eyeing an end of May start in Connecticut.

"Shelter" marks the 22-year-old actress first purely ' dramatic feature role, and continues her efforts to move beyond her teen-queen image. Hudgens came into the public's eye with Disney's "High School Musical" movies before moving to Zack Snyder's ensemble fantasy "Sucker Punch," and she has the family adventure movie "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" opening in September.

Fraser, who coincidentally starred in the first "Journey to the Center of the Earth" film, was last seen in "Furry Vengeance."

Bryan Cranston to play mayor in "Rock of Ages"

Reuters, LOS ANGELES, May 2: Bryan Cranston is the latest addition to the cast of the rock musical "Rock of Ages."

Director Adam Shankman announced on Twitter on Saturday that Cranston, a three-time Emmy winner for his turn as a methhead in "Breaking Bad," will play the mayor of Los Angeles in the movie about an '80s rock club.

The New Line movie, which begins filming this month, is set to star Diego Gonzalez Boneta, Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Mary J. Blige, Paul Giamatti, Julianne Hough and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Warner Music $3 billion buyout could be done this week: source

Reuters, NEW YORK, May 2: Final buyout bids for Warner Music Group are due on Monday and the company could be sold by the end of the week in a deal valued at over $3 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The third round of bids is led by two competing financial groups Len Blavatnik's Access Industry and a joint bid by Tom and Alec Gores' Platinum Equity and Gores Group, according two people.

The Warner Music sale process is taking place against a backdrop of ongoing declines in music sales as executives struggle to figure out new business models to guarantee the future of the industry. While Warner Music continues to generate reasonable levels of cash on its balance sheet -- a key metric for investors -- it will still be seen as a risky investment in a very tough market.

Two weeks ago the second-round bids came in around $3 billion according to three people who asked not to be named as the process is confidential. Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Co, dropped out of the bidding late last week, the first person said.

Matching bids from two major music names fell short of what Warner's board was looking for from strategic buyers in the second round but there is still a chance that rival music companies will be involved at a later stage in picking over some of Warner Music assets.

While the final round bids are due early this week, there is no certainty a deal will get done, the first person said.

All of the parties declined to comment.

Warner Music's board effectively put itself up for sale in January when it appointed Goldman Sachs and AGM Partners to assess interest from external parties. Since then its shares have risen nearly 60 percent to $7.47 at the end last week.

One reason why the Warner Music board is open to moving ahead with financial bidders is because it fears an expensive delay in the process by regulators if the company is bought by another music company, the first source said.

Regulators have scuppered music deals in the past including at least one of several attempts to combine Warner Music and EMI over the last decade. Warner's board, led by Chief Executive Edgar Bronfman, had demanded a premium from the music companies for their second-round bids.

BMG Music Rights, a joint music venture between German media giant Bertelsmann and private equity firm KKR, gave up on staying in the bidding process early last week declining to raise its bid any higher.

BMG Music could still be involved in the process said a third person, but it is now likely to wait till the end to see who wins out and then try to see what publishing assets it might be able to buy from the new owners.

Sony Corp is also still on the sidelines of the process, according to another person. But it faces the same high hurdles from Warner's board.

"The key issues for Warner Music's board are price and simplicity of the transaction process," said one of the people familiar with the talks.

GOOD VALUE

Music companies say they have the upper hand in the long-run. Compared to financial buyers, lenders favor company bids in such leveraged buyouts.

Warner Music Group is highly leveraged with around $1.1 billion in equity and $1.9 billion in debt. It is expected to generate around $333 million in earnings before interest, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in fiscal year 2012 according to Thomson Reuters data. This means Warner Music is currently being valued at around nine times future earnings.

Music companies believe they could cut tens of millions of dollars in annual costs by combining with Warner helping to lower the valuation multiple to much lower than eight times thereby making it a less risky bet for lenders.

One likely outcome of the process is that whoever wins Warner Music will probably also make bid for EMI Group and take advantage of the potentially huge value that could be created by cutting costs across in a combined company, say industry watchers.

EMI is currently owned by Citigroup. Citigroup is expected to put the music company up for sale in the near future after taking control from private equity firm Terra Firma in February. 

"Fast Five", "Thor" top box office attractions

Reuters, LOS ANGELES, May 2: "Fast Five," the fifth entry in the "Fast and the Furious" street-racing franchise, raced to the biggest opening of the year at the North American box office, while "Thor" was the top choice overseas.

According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, "Fast Five" earned about $83.6 million during its first three days of release across the United States and Canada, proving the appeal of car chases in exotic locales for young male moviegoers.

Industry prognosticators had expected the film to edge past the $71 million start for the previous film, "Fast and Furious" in 2009. The opening also boosted the flagging fortunes of both its distributor, Universal Pictures, and the overall industry.

"Thor" pulled in $83 million from 56 foreign markets, a week before the Marvel comic book adaptation opens in North America. Top-ranked openings included Britain ($9 million), France ($8.1 million) and South Korea ($5.7 million). Its foreign total stands at $93 million after the Paramount Pictures release got an early start in Australia last weekend.

"Fast Five" earned $45.3 million internationally after expanding to 14 markets from four last weekend. It opened at No. 1 in each of the 10 new markets, including Russia ($11.5 million), Germany ($10.2 million) and Spain ($6.3 million). Its foreign total stands at $81.4 million.

The strong performances of the two action films suggest a strong summer for the Hollywood studios, which have suffered a dismal year so far. Ticket sales in North America are off 17 percent and attendance is down 18 percent from 2010. Universal, newly controlled by Comcast Corp, had the smallest market share of the six major studios last year. It has enjoyed a decent 2011 because it distributed the hit cartoon "Hop."

BRAZIL IN SPOTLIGHT

Boasting a price tag of about $125 million, "Fast Five" reunites franchise stars Vin Diesel and Paul Walker in a high-octane series of car chases set in the slums of Rio De Janeiro. It easily crushed the old mark for the best opening of the year -- $39.2 million -- set two weekends ago by "Rio," a cartoon also set in the Brazilian city. "Fast Five" is actually the strongest new release since "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I" opened to $125 million last November.

Universal said "Fast Five" set a new company record, surpassing the $72.1 million bow of "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" in 1997. Figures are not adjusted for inflation.

The franchise originated in 2001 as "The Fast and the Furious," and hit top gear with the 2009 installment, which earned $353 million worldwide.

Two other new releases crashed in North America during the weekend. The Walt Disney Co teen comedy "Prom" came in at No. 5 with $5 million, and Weinstein Co's animated sequel "Hoodwinked Too! Hood Vs. Evil" at No. 6 with $4.1 million. They had been expected to open in the $7 million to $9 million range.

"Prom" marks the first film given the green light by Walt Disney Studios Chairman Rich Ross after he was given the job during a restructuring in October 2009. It cost about $8 million to make. Disney hopes to do better when its fourth "Pirates of the Caribbean" film opens on May 20.

Weinstein, the closely held studio behind best picture Oscar winner "The King's Speech," said it was disappointed by the opening for its Hansel and Gretel story, but it had limited financial exposure. The company received a distribution fee from the film's producer, a firm run by vodka mogul Maurice Kanbar. The Hollywood Reporter described "Hoodwinked" as "one of the most obnoxious and least necessary animated films of the century thus far."

After two weeks at No. 1, "Rio" fell to No. 2 with $14.4 million; the total for the Fox cartoon rose to $103.6 million. Fox is a unit of News Corp.