The next big James Bond flick starring Daniel Craig as agent 007 saw an opportunity once “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” opted to move their premiere to a later date. Like any good secret agent, the deft spy has moved “Quantum of Solace” to debut a week later than originally scheduled to take advantage of being a bit closer to the American Thanksgiving crowd. “Quantum of Solace” will now be released on November 14 of this year instead of November 7.
This change puts Bond back on its familiar track of opening the weekend before Thanksgiving, a schedule that has been in place almost since the beginning of the franchise. This year, however, Sony was concerned about coming up against the highly popular Potter franchise, which was originally set for that spot. Now that Harry and the gang at Hogwarts have moved forward in time, Bond can stretch a bit in its more settled position and where it will virtually own that weekend before the popular U.S. holiday.
Speaking of Bond’s move, Sony’s Jeff Blake, chairperson of the company’s worldwide marketing division said, “We believe Nov. 14 is a great date that allows us to play straight through Thanksgiving and right into Christmas. We believe this decision will give the public a wider opportunity to see the film over the holiday.”
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” will now premiere in July 2009, making it a major summer contender. Bond’s only other major competition will be the Catherine Hardwicke novel-to-film vampire love story “Twilight,” also expected to do well, but isn’t considered as serious a box office threat to 007 as Harry Potter. Besides “Twilight,” Bond will also have to face-off “Australia,” the epic setter starring Nicole Kidman-Hugh Jackman, “Nothing Like the Holidays” and “Soul Men.”
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