Sony takes 'Solace' and moves it to Nov. 14 (VAR, THR, DHD)
By Nancy Tartaglione-Vialatte
With Warner Bros.' decision to move the next �Harry Potter� out of the Thanksgiving slot, Sony and MGM are taking advantage of the opening to push �Quantum of Solace� back a week and release on Nov. 14. The new Bond pic was originally slated for Nov. 7 (Bond films, Variety notes, generally open the weekend before Thanksgiving) but Sony didn�t want to position itself too close to the boy wizard.
After the Warner move � an effort to balance out its slate after the �Dark Knight� juggernaut - Summit was the first to respond by moving Catherine Hardwicke's vampire pic "Twilight" to Nov. 21.
Of the �Solace� decision, Jeff Blake, Sony chairman of worldwide marketing and distribution, 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."
Sony released the last Bond film, "Casino Royale," on Nov. 17, 2006, and it was still playing in about 1,100 theaters between the following Christmas and New Year's, Blake indicated.
Sony, which is a minority stake owner of MGM, holds worldwide theatrical rights to the two most recent Bond movies, with longtime Bond franchise co-owner MGM controlling all post-theatrical windows, The Hollywood Reporter notes.
The game of musical chairs continued when, within hours of the Bond film�s move, Universal decided to move R-rated comedy "Role Models" off of that date and open it instead on Nov. 7.
For the moment, "Solace" will now face off with Fox's Nicole Kidman-Hugh Jackman epic "Australia," Overture's dramedy "Nothing Like the Holidays" and MGM comedy "Soul Men."
Bond films tend to go out earlier in the UK. "Solace" will get a world premiere Oct. 29 in London, followed two days later by its UK opening.
Separately, UA's �Valkyrie� has moved up from Presidents Weekend 2009 to December 26th, Deadline Hollywood Daily notes.
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