"Horton" likely to hear good news again

By Carl DiOrio

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Easter isn't so much a huge box-office weekend as it is one that typically requires careful slotting to get moviegoers hopping to the multiplex.

With lots of kids off from school for Good Friday -- not to mention those enjoying spring break respites from classrooms -- Fox's animated comedy "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!" could top the domestic box office again. A 50 percent hold should be easily attainable under the circumstances, and the film could reap more than $22 million, though it could take a bit more than that to beat the Lionsgate comedy "Meet the Browns."

Set for more than 2,000 theaters, Tyler Perry's "Browns" is the latest in a recent series of Easter openers aimed at a black audience. Last April, Ice Cube's comedy "Are We Done Yet?" mounted a $14.3 million opening, and the previous Easter saw the Wayans brothers' "Scary Movie 4" debut to $40.2 million.

"Based on the tracking, it certainly seems Tyler's fans are ready to come out in big numbers this weekend," Lionsgate distribution president Steve Rothenberg said.

Perry's previous film, October's "Why Did I Get Married?," bowed to $21.3 million en route to a total domestic haul of $55.2 million. His most successful opening was the February 2006 bow of "Madea's Family Reunion," which grossed $30 million during its first frame and $63.2 million overall.

"Browns" is the first Perry film since "Madea" to be based on a well-known play by the playwright-turned-filmmaker. But the popular Madea character -- a no-nonsense matriarch played by Perry in drag -- figures in just five minutes of "Browns," and that could keep the latest Perry release from opening at a new high.

TWEEN APPEAL

Other wide openers this weekend include Paramount's Owen Wilson comedy "Drillbit Taylor" and Fox's remake of a 2004 Thai horror hit, "Shutter."