Sony prepares big show to hype "Spider-Man 3"

By Bob Tourtellotte

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The "Spider-Man" movies already are among of the biggest box office hits ever and, with "Spider-Man 3" opening in May, Sony Corp.'s Columbia Pictures is pulling out all the stops to make sure the films stay on top.

With a production cost of slightly more than $250 million and with tens of millions more pumped into marketing, the movie about a comic book superhero who uses spider-like powers to catch crooks, represents a huge financial risk. But offsetting risk is the movies' wide popularity.

"Spider-Man" in 2002 and "Spider-Man 2" in 2004 averaged more than $800 million at global box offices and millions more in DVD and other sales. The films boosted profits at Sony and aided Marvel Entertainment Inc., owner of rights to the comic book character, and video game maker Activision Inc..

"This really is our home-grown hero. The whole company gets behind it and embraces it," said Jeff Blake, vice chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, the division that runs Columbia.

For many months, fans have seen theater advertising, Web promotions, billboards and other ads with the red-and-blue suited Spider-man (Maguire), his nemesis The New Goblin (James Franco) and love interest, Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst).

But the web of Spider-Man hype gets wider on April 16 with the first of a series of premieres starting in Tokyo. The movie's makers then head to London on April 23 and Rome, Berlin, Madrid, Moscow, Stockholm and New York on April 30 for "Spider-Man Week in NYC." The movie debuts globally on May 4.

Blake did not comment on costs or expected ticket sales, but based on the first two movies, box office watchers think "Spider-Man 3" might match or even exceed the previous two.

SPIDEY'S MONEY WEB