Brigid Brown

WHEATON, Ill. – Studio Movie Grill opens its first Midwest in-theater dining venue in Wheaton, Ill. on June 8, 2012 at 301 Lake Square. This new breed of theater-going takes the guesswork out of planning a night of dinner and a movie by combining the two. Opening film titles include “Prometheus,” “Rock of Ages,” “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” and “Safety Not Guaranteed”.

CHICAGO – Arnold Schwarzenegger promised moviegoers, “I’ll be back.” He makes his on-screen leading man return in filmmaker David Ayer’s action thriller “Ten”. Ayer’s writing credits include 2001 hit film “Training Day”, which earned an Academy Award for Denzel Washington. He will also appear in this Summer’s “The Expendables 2.”

CHICAGO – “Think Like a Man” – starring Kevin Hart and Gabrielle Union – held its own, securing the top spot for a second week in a row with a weekend gross of $17.6 million ($60.4 million total). “The Five-Year Engagement” written by and starring Jason Segel was expected to top the box office this past weekend but came in at a disappointing fifth place with a weekend gross of $10.6 million. The second and third spots were held respectively by new release family animated movie “The Pirates! Band of Misfits” ($11.1 million total) and “The Hunger Games” ($372 million total).

CHICAGO — Warner Bros. Pictures geared up for the release of Peter Jackson’s upcoming epic “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” by screening 10 minutes of never-before-seen footage at CinemaCon, the official convention of the National Association of Theater Owners (NATO) according to a studio press release. Ian McKellan, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom and Elijah Wood return to reprise their roles as seen in the trilogy “The Lord of the Rings”, the sequel to J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit”.

CHICAGO – The female heroine driven film “The Hunger Games” had held the top spot for the past four weeks but has been knocked out by “Think Like a Man” based on Steve Harvey’s best-selling book. The movie is directed by Tim Story and written by Keith Merryman & David A. Newman starring Michael Ealy (“Barbershop”), Jerry Ferrara (“Entourage”), Meagan Good (“The Steve Harvey Show”), Regina Hall (“Death at a Funeral”), Kevin Hart (“The Five-Year Engagement”), Taraji P. Henson (“The Family that Preys”), Terrence J (“Sparkle”), Jenifer Lewis (“Meet the Browns”), Romany Malco (“Baby Mama”), Gary Owen (“Daddy Day Care”), and Gabrielle Union (“Bad Boys 2”). The weekend gross was $34 million almost tripling the reported production budget of $12 million.

CHICAGO – “The Hunger Games” fans’ ravenous appetite for more will soon be satisfied as Lionsgate is moving forward with the sequel “Catching Fire.” According to The Hollywood Reporter, the studio has chosen Francis Lawrence to direct the anticipated sequel after Gary Ross chose not to return to the franchise. Lawrence’s most recent work includes “I Am Legend” and “Water for Elephants.” Stars Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson are expected to return.