Batman may bow down to "Mummy"

By Carl DiOrio

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - This is the weekend Batman should get whooped by somebody's mummy.

Universal on Friday opens "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor," which could earn upwards of $50 million for the weekend in United States and Canada, enough to end the two-week reign of "The Dark Knight."

Warner Bros.' massive Batman sequel appears likely to gross $40 million or so during its third session.

"The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" marks the third film in the Brendan Fraser adventure franchise, following 1999's "The Mummy," which opened to $43.4 million, and 2001's "The Mummy Returns," which unwrapped a $68 million bow. They ended up with $155.4 million and $202 million, respectively.

The addition of Jet Li as a villain in the threequel seems to have restoked interest among the franchise's fan base. Michelle Yeoh also joins the cast, while Maria Bello replaces Rachel Weisz.

Also Friday, Disney debuts the Kevin Costner political comedy "Swing Vote," but low turnout among an older-skewing crowd should limit returns to the single-digit millions.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter