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The wimp takes down King Leonidas

Kim Hollis: Diary of a Wimpy Kid, a relatively unheralded tween film from Fox, opened to $22.1 million. Do you consider this a clear win for the studio?

Josh Spiegel: Absolutely, though any potential story of this movie doing better (even marginally so) than The Bounty Hunter is a bit iffy to begin with; although I can admit to being ignorant of the series of books on which the movie is based, Diary of a Wimpy Kid had a very strong following among kids. What's more, the movie has no big stars (sorry, Steve Zahn), no well-known director; all it has is the recognition of the source material. That getting this movie over $20 million is a big win indeed.

Michael Lynderey: This is really a distinct franchise-starter for Fox, and I have no doubt that Rodrick Rules (that would be the sequel) is going to be given the fast-track by Tuesday. Diary of a Wimpy Kid will probably finish north of $60 million, and if the sequel does, too, they've got a whole series of mid-size hits on the horizon (there are four books right now, with a fifth on the way). Looking at the film itself, I'm startled at just how well it did. Getting the fanbase out helped, as did the mostly positive reviews. A nice surprise.

Daron Aldridge: The studio was smart to capitalize on the Spring Break holiday for its release too. Friday was either the start of the final weekend of the break or the beginning for many many kids. Since this demographic isn't heading to Panama City or South Padre Island, giving the parents a simple activity was a very savvy move. It also didn't hurt that there really is a void for movies to this audience. Alice is the only one close and I have heard many parents voice trepidation to taking their eight- to 12-year-old to see it despite its PG-rating.





Tim Briody: I'd heard of this series, though I couldn't tell you what it was about (which is more than I can say for Percy Jackson), but this is two kid franchises that have started in a big way this year. While neither of them is quite yet the winner of the Next Harry Potter sweepstakes, this is definitely a big win.

Jim Van Nest: I'd say it's definitely a win though I don't find it surprising in the least. The Wimpy Kid books are huge in the grade schools right now. There was a waiting line at our book fair for the fourth book earlier this year. While people without children will look at this result and shake their heads, those of us in the right age group are not shocked at all and already plan on catching the entire series in the theater.

Reagen Sulewski: Whether or not they do get a franchise out of this, it's a clear win, as they more than made back the production budget in their first weekend. The biggest thing this shows is how important it is to forge a kids' film when the irons are hot on its popularity, as you have no guarantee that your audience will stick with it for years. It's less than three years from the publication of the first book to the movie, which is astounding turnaround time for anything in Hollywood.

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