'Ice Age,' 'Enemies' both start strong on Wednesday

Nobody's sure yet about July 4, but July 1 sure was kind to this weekend's two new movies.

Fox's "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" and Universal's "Public Enemies" both got a healthy head start on the weekend Wednesday, grossing $13.75 million and $8.2 million, respectively, in ticket sales,  according to initial studio reports.

The two movies' stronger-than-expected first-day performances provided a boost to expectations, previously based on pre-release audience surveys only, for their grosses through Sunday. "Ice Age," which had looked likely to sell about $60 million worth of tickets, could now do $65 million or $70 million. "Public Enemies" has a very good shot at earning more than $40 million, whereas industry executives previously thought it would gross $35 million.

Even with a good start, however, neither picture looks like a smash hit yet. The second "Ice Age" opened to $68 million on a three-day weekend in 2006. That's about as much as "Dawn of the Dinosaurs," which cost $90 million to produce, looks likely to make in five days, despite rising ticket prices and a surcharge at the theaters where the film is playing in 3-D.

"Public Enemies," which earned largely positive reviews, will still need a long life at the box office beyond its opening to turn a profit on its production budget, which was, according to a source close to the film, a bit over $100 million.

Also still very much in the mix this weekend is Paramount's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," which grossed $10.9 million on Wednesday and will likely be in a tight competition with "Ice Age" to be No. 1 at the box office this weekend. It already has grossed a massive $239 million in the U.S. and Canada and is sure to become the No. 1 film of the year by the weekend.

Executives throughout Hollywood will be closely watching the weather on Saturday, which is typically the busiest movie-going day of the week. The more rain there is on July 4, the more likely it is audiences will forget about barbecues and fireworks and head to the local multiplex, boosting receipts for all three films.

-- Ben Fritz

Photo: "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs." Credit: Blue Sky Studios

Syfy declares independence from its old name

Cable networks have to work extra-hard to establish their brands, unlike broadcast networks such as ABC, NBC and CBS, whose longevity and prominence makes them difficult to miss.

Through creative advertising campaigns -- not to mention noteworthy shows -- cable networks such as TNT, FX, USA and lately AMC have established their identities with the public. We tend to know what we’ll be getting when we tune in to those channels: crafty escapism on USA, sophisticated storytelling on FX, mainstream procedurals on TNT and urbane, cinematic drama on AMC.

So why would an established cable network mess with a good thing?

For Sci Fiâ€"which changes its name to Syfy Tuesdayâ€"it’s a matter of survival.

The old way of doing businessâ€"in which a network merely airs programs and collects ad dollarsâ€"won’t quite cut it in the multimedia future, said Sci Fi president Dave Howe in a recent interview in his New York office. And the name Sci Fiâ€"which also applies to an entire genre of film, books and other forms of mediaâ€"wasn’t something the network could trademark.

“Nothing gets greenlit unless we believe the business model is much more than linear, live viewing,” Howe said, citing DVD movies, video games, Webisodes, Web sites and iPhone apps as just a few of the multimedia ventures the network sees as vital to its future. But Sci Fi wanted to brand those kinds of ventures with a name it could own and trademark.

“When people understand the rationale, they do get it,” Howe added. “You can’t have a brand called ‘Sport’ or ‘Drama’ or ‘News.’ It’s just not a brand name.”

Certainly, awareness of Sci Fi, which was launched in 1992, had grown in recent years, especially during the era of the award-winning “Battlestar Galactica,” which ended its run in March. During Howe’s tenureâ€"he’s been at Sci Fi for eight yearsâ€"the network went from exporting shows to a few other countries to shipping programming to more than 50 territories.

As the network expanded worldwide and into multimedia realms, executives wanted a more distinctive name, but finding a name that would not only work for the network but be available legally and obtainable in the online realm (the network’s new site will be syfy.com) took two years.

“The issue that we’ve always had with Sci Fi is that it only communicates three things: Space, aliens and the future,” Howe said. “That’s the default perception, and that’s a barrier to entry for people who we know like [reality fare such as] ‘Ghost Hunters’ and ‘Destination Truth’” as well as “Eureka”, which returns July 10, and the sprightly and amusing “Warehouse 13,” which premieres Tuesday.

So why not change the name more radically? It was pointed out to Howe that "Mansquito," the name of one of the network's goofball Saturday-night horror flicks, was right there for the taking. 

Howe found that idea amusing, but when he was done laughing, he explained that a branding agency came up with a list of 300 names that the channel could possibly use. Of those, only a few dozen were legally viable, and executives at the network only really liked a couple from that short list (Howe wouldn't reveal what the runner-up was, but said the network may use it as a "sub brand" in the future).

What Sci Fi executives liked about Syfy was that it serves as a transition between the network's old identity and its new path, which involves a "Battlestar" prequel series, "Caprica," which debuts in January, "Stargate Universe," a space-adventure series that debuts in October, and comedically-tinged fare such as "Warehouse 13."

"We absolutely embrace the genre but we embrace the totality of it," Howe said. "[We're about] sci fi, fantasy, paranormal, supernatural action-adventure, mystery, investigation. The new brand works with those and gives us permission to do more of that."

Though the escapist and accessible "Warehouse 13" "epitomizes" where the network is going, Syfy won't abandon "space opera," Howe said. The network is trying to develop a classic genre show along those lines. It's also developing a remake of "Alien Nation" with writer/producer Tim Minear, and the "Battlestar" tradition continues with the TV movie "The Plan," which airs in November, and with "Caprica," which is set 50 years before the events of "Battlestar."

The network is also in the process of creating more shows that will cater to audience segments that it discovered through market research, especially viewers curious about the supernatural world and fans of "thrill ride," emotion-packed shows with a horror element.

There was a fair amount of mockery, especially in the online realm, when the name change was announced in March, but Howe said that compared to the cancellation of “Stargate Atlantis,” which overwhelmed his e-mail inbox for months, he’s only gotten a couple of dozen snarky e-mails about the Syfy switch.

“We expected fans not to like it. The reaction from fans always same default reactionâ€"it’s that we’re going to abandon the genre,” Howe said. “This isn’t want that’s about.”

Photos: "Battlestar Galactica," "Warehouse 13."

Eye's July 4th calendar
Eye's July 4th calendar
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