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Matthew Huntley: Like Josh suggested, Sony saw a golden opportunity for counter-programming and it paid off handsomely. The studio must have known that The Hangover Part II and, to a lesser degree, Bridesmaids (no one expected this would be such a smash), would be waning right about now, and they took advantage of the open frame for the next raunchy comedy. It will have semi-direct competition next week when Larry Crowne arrives, but with a reported budget of only $20 million, Bad Teacher is sure to pay off. I don't think Cameron Diaz had as much to do with this as much as her type did. If you took any long-legged, sexy, blonde actress and put her in the same role, I think the opening would have been similar. Not to discount Diaz's talent or box-office appeal, but I don't think people were paying to see her necessarily. They were paying to see her type.

Edwin Davies: Even though no one could have known in advance that Bridesmaids was going to become the phenomenon that it has, I do think that its success may have helped Bad Teacher in an indirect way. With the sort of lukewarm reviews that it has received, and Cameron Diaz's less than stellar form at the box office recently, I could see this film opening $10 million less in a Bridesmaids-less summer. But in much the same way that we have argued that the success of a superhero film can have the knock on effect of creating excitement for future superhero films, I think that the success of Bridesmaids created excitement for the next female-led raunchy comedy to come out, which just so happened to be Bad Teacher.

Tom Houseman: I think this movie hit every right note in the marketing. Cameron Diaz has, when given the opportunity in films like There's Something About Mary and The Sweetest Thing, been able to be both incredibly sexy and incredibly funny. Here she seems to be given free reign, and as a result she looks awesome. Jason Segel's sweetness tempers Diaz's bitterness in the trailers, and his "Jordan vs. LeBron" argument netted probably the most laughs of any ad. And then, of course, there's Justin Timberlake. A number this big is unexpected, but that's what happens when counter-programming works effectively.

Jim Van Nest: I don't know that they could have marketed Bad Teacher any better than they did. They have some hilarious money shots and they were in all the trailers and commercials. I think Jason Segel is just getting bigger and bigger and, as mentioned, you cannot discount Timberlake's presence. I don't think Cameron Diaz hurts the film in any way, but I really don't think people rushed out to the theaters to see Bad Teacher because she was the lead. I think it was a mix of great marketing and even better timing.

David Mumpower: Since the moment I saw this trailer, I've known this was going to be a hit. As I said during a Trailer Hitch discussion a while ago, sometimes an actor stumbles into the perfect role for them. Cameron Diaz playing against her America's Sweetheart type is a casting masterstroke, one which I do not believe any other actress in the industry could have made so appealing. As Josh and Matthew suggest, summer is a great time for comedy and the fact that The Hangover II is a movie that gives its target audience what they want and Bridesmaids is a shockingly huge blockbuster, meaning that audiences have been positively reinforced by recent high profile comedies. That also aided Bad Teacher a bit. The end result is a very impressive opening weekend and a likely $100+ million finish.

So, with Bad Santa and Bad Teacher in the books, what's the next Bad project?

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