The CIA thrillers “Argo” and “Zero Dark Thirty” have won top screenplay honors from the Writers Guild of America.
The guild’s adapted screenplay award Sunday went to Chris Terrio for “Argo,” director Ben Affleck’s tale of the CIA’s daring masquerade of six U.S. diplomats as a Hollywood film crew to rescue them from Iran during the hostage crisis there.
Mark Boal won the prize for original screenplay for “Zero Dark Thirty,” director Kathryn Bigelow’s chronicle of the CIA’s manhunt for al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
Director Malik Bendjelloul won the documentary award for “Searching for Sugar Man,” his portrait of acclaimed but largely forgotten 1970s musician Rodriguez.
The guild was the last of Hollywood’s major trade unions to weigh in on the year’s top films before next Sunday’s Academy Awards.
“Argo” has emerged as the best-picture favorite for the Oscars after sweeping top prizes at earlier film honors, including the Golden Globes and awards from the Directors Guild of America, the Screen Actors Guild and the Producers Guild of America.
Among the guild’s TV winners:
— Drama series: “Breaking Bad,” written by Sam Catlin, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, George Mastras, Thomas Schnauz and Moira Walley-Beckett.
— Comedy series: “Louie,” written by Pamela Adlon, Vernon Chatman and Louis C.K.
— New series: “Girls,” written by Judd Apatow, Lesley Arfin, Lena Dunham, Sarah Heyward, Bruce Eric Kaplan, Jenni Konner, Deborah Schoeneman and Dan Sterling.
“Sonic the Hedgehog 3” Tops Weekend Box Office
In the holiday season battle of big-budget family movies, Paramount Pictures' "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" sped past the Walt Disney Co.'s "Mufasa: The Lion King" to take the top spot at the box office ahead of the lucrative Christmas corridor in theaters.
"Sonic the Hedgehog 3" debuted with $62 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates. With strong reviews (86% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and a high score from audiences (an "A" on CinemaScore), "Sonic 3" is well positioned to be the top choice in cinemas during the busiest moviegoing period of the year.
It was telling of some wider trends that "Sonic 3" — made for $122 million — bested one of Disney's top properties. Videogame adaptations, once among the most derided movie genres, have emerged as one of the most dependable box office forces in recent years. The two previous "Sonic" movies together grossed more $700 million worldwide and the third installment appears likely to do better than both of them. A fourth "Sonic" movie is already in development.
"Mufasa," however, was humbled in its opening weekend, with its $35 million in domestic ticket sales coming in notably shy of expectations . The photorealistic "Lion King" prequel even opened wider than "Sonic 3," launching on 4,100 theaters and gobbling up most IMAX screens, compared with 3,761 locations for "Sonic 3."
Though "Mufasa's" reviews were poor (56% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences gave it an "A-" CinemaScore.
"Sonic 3" nearly doubled the haul for "Mufasa," which cost more than $200 million to make. Disney could look to $87.2 million in international sales to help make up the difference. The third "Sonic" will rollout in most overseas markets in the coming weeks.
In director Jeff... Read More