Entertainment Weekly - Say Whaaa?

This afternoon I read the new Entertainment Weekly, in which the writer discussed the successes and failures at the box office over the summer. WALL-E, Iron Man, The Dark Knight, Mamma Mia!, and Sex & the City: The Movie, were, of course, among those considered to be successes, but the writer also included The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, claiming that the success of that film, along with Journey to the Center of the Earth, proved Brendan Fraser was still viable as a box office draw. Huh? How is the new Mummy movie a success? It cost 145 million dollars to produce, not including advertising, which was probably an additional 50 million, and it only grossed 99 million at the domestic box office. Figuring that the studio only receives fifty percent of the box office, with the other fifty going to the theatres, the movie's gross probably only covered the cost of advertising. Yes, the movie will make a profit once the overseas box office and the future dvd sales and rentals are included, but it is not a success - it's a bomb! Hello! The X Files: I Want to Believe was considered to be a giant bomb because it's only grossed 21 million so far, but in contrast, the movie only cost 30 million to make. As for Brendan Fraser still being a box office draw (and one could question whether he ever actually was one in the first place) , that's a lotta BS. The first movie in the Mummy franchise grossed 155 million domestically, and the second grossed 202 million. That's a big drop between the second and third, meaning people really weren't that interested in seeing him return to the series. In addition, the minimal success Journey to the Center of the Earth has had cannot be attributed to Brendan's presence in the film. Most kids probably went to the film with their families to see dinosaurs and other weird creatures on giant IMAX screens in 3-D. But, you know the media spins things in weird ways that rarely ever make any sense. I guess the writer just really loves Brendan Fraser!