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Such optimism should not be held for the other two openers this weekend. Van Wilder sat on Lionsgate's shelves indefinitely, bounced around the schedule like it was flubber, and made around $21 million in domestic release. In one of the most unlikely developments in recent movie history, a sequel wound up being made - one that was not straight-to-video. Kal Penn, the co-star of that film as well as half of the Harold/Kumar combo that got stoned and went to White Castle, has been promoted for the follow-up. Portraying the unforgettable (hey, why not?) role of Taj Mahal Badalandabad, Penn anchors the usual National Lampoon's cast of buxom women and nerdy men with the key difference being that they are all British...and completely unknown in the US. If Kal Penn is the biggest star on the set, a movie has no business doing $5.6 million, but that's what I am expecting here.

The only thing worse than being the weakest opener out of three movies is when you are the weakest opener out of these three movies. Turistas appears doomed to that fate. The Josh Duhamel/Melissa George horror flick is a Hostel knock-off that sees American tourists threatened with murder most foul by a bunch of locals sick of watching all the Amazing Race wannabes spend a weekend hitting on their women...though it's hot if Melissa George does it. 1,570 empty theaters are going to exhibit Turistas, so if you have ever fantasized about having sexual encounters in public, this is your best bet for the weekend. BOP is of course not endorsing such an idea since we got in trouble that one time when Pee Wee Herman threw us under the bus. Turistas might earn $4.8 million over the weekend, though I suspect even this total is ambitious.

Forecast: Weekend of December 1-3, 2006
Rank	Film	Number of Sites	Changes in Sites from Last	Estimated Gross ($)
1	Happy Feet	3,804	0	19.4
2	Casino Royale	3,386	-57	14.8
3	The Nativity Story	3,183	New	13.6
4	Deja Vu	3,108	0	9.2
5	Deck the Halls	3,205	0	6.4
6	Van Wilder Deux: The Rise of Taj	1,979	New	5.6
7	Borat	2,237	-343	4.9
8	Turistas	1,570	New	4.8
9	The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause	2,617	-426	4.0
10	Flushed Away	2,053	-568	3.1

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