'Paranormal Activity' vs. 'Where the Wild Things Are': Who wins the weekend?

Max hugs KC in a scene from this weekend's expected box office champ "Where The Wild Things Are."

Credit: Warner Bros.

It's sort of a misnomer to think that Paramount's hyped horror flick "Paranormal Activity" can actually beat "Where The Wild Things Are" at the box office this weekend, but at least it's theoretically possible.

"Activity" is coming off a massive $7.9 million in only 160 theaters this past weekend, but Paramount Pictures is only expanding the thriller to 760 theaters.  A $15 million gross seems likely, but it may beat "Wild Things" in per screen average.

"Wild Things" has been October's tracking monster for weeks and with positive reviews the Spike Jonze opus could hit anywhere from $38-40 million for the weekend.  Considering how many hurdles Jonze had to overcome to finish the film anything close to that figure will be sweet vindication come Monday morning.

Despite a massive TV buy, Overture Films will have to settle with a take in the low $20-25 million range for the Jamie Foxx/Gerard Butler thriller "Law Abiding Citizen."  The F. Gary Gray flick could have hit over $30 million, but it appears "Paranormal" will scare away some of its audience.

Last week's champ, "Couples Retreat," doesn't have any real comedy competition, but should still fall anywhere from 50-60% for a weekend take of $16-18 million.  The Vince Vaughn comedy has already cumed $45 million in just six days.

The weekend's last big opener is Screen Gems' "The Stepfather."  This is another thriller suffering from the word of mouth of "Paranormal."  What could have been a $20 million 3-day is now looking closer to $10-15 million. 

Also opening in limited release this weekend is "New York, I Love You" and the Sundance Film Festival comedy "Black Dynamite."

Before you hit the theater, check out the brand new trailer for "Paranormal Activity" as well as a new interview with "Wild Things" stars Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker and Lauren Ambrose.

[To get tickets or showtimes to any of these films, click the blue hyper links for each title.]

What movie are you catching this weekend?  Vote in our poll or share your thoughts below.

Gregory Ellwood
Editor-in-Chief, Co-Founder

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With over a decade of experience in the movie industry, Ellwood survived working for two major studios and has written for Variety, MSN and the LA Times. A co-founder of HitFix, Ellwood spends his time relaxing hitting 3’s on the basketball court and following his beloved Clippers.