Bond vs. penguins in box-office battle of tuxedos

Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale.

LOS ANGELES - The winner of this weekend's U.S. movie box-office battle is almost guaranteed to be wearing a tuxedo.

"Casino Royale," the 21st installment in the venerable James Bond movie franchise, opened on Friday with Daniel Craig making his eagerly awaited debut as agent 007, but experts say the dancing penguins of the computer-animated film "Happy Feet" will give him a run for his money at the multiplex.

The contest for bragging rights to the No. 1 spot this weekend appeared to be a toss-up, with box-office watchers giving a slight edge to "Happy Feet," which targets family audiences and opens on more screens than Bond.

With an all-star voice cast that includes Robin Williams, Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and Elijah Wood, the Antarctic adventure is being released in 3,804 North American theaters by Warner Bros. Pictures, a unit of Time Warner Inc.

"Casino Royale," distributed by Sony Corp.'s Columbia Pictures studio, bows in 3,434 cinemas in the United States and Canada.

Both films have drawn overwhelmingly warm reviews. But movies such as "Happy Feet" that play to kids and grown-ups alike generally pack greater commercial potential than adult-oriented action fare like "Casino Royale."

SQUEEZE IN SCREENINGS

The shorter running time for "Happy Feet" also allows exhibitors to squeeze in more screenings per day, though that advantage is at least partially offset by lower ticket prices for children.

Entertainment trade publication The Hollywood Reporter predicted "Happy Feet" could reach $50 million in its first three days, with "Casino Royale" landing around $40 million.

"Casino" opened in Britain on Thursday to ticket sales of 1.7 million pounds ($3.2 million), the most ever grossed by a Bond film on its first day in the UK.

The film-tracking Web site boxofficemojo.com put "Casino" slightly ahead in its U.S. box-office forecast at $47 million, compared with $43 million for "Happy Feet."

"But I would not be surprised if the penguins beat Bond next weekend and beat it in the long run," boxofficemojo analyst Brandon Gray told Reuters.

Gray said a major factor this weekend is the tremendous advance media attention paid to "Casino," which traces the early career of Bond and stars Craig in his first appearance as a grittier 007.