‘I Am Number Four’ Lands Presidents’ Weekend 2011
Another Presidents' Day weekend, another book adaptation trying to be the next youth fantasy franchise. Sci-fi fantasy I Am Number Four, based on the unpublished novel of the same name, will arrive in theaters on Feb. 18, 2011, distributor Walt Disney Pictures announced today, opening opposite sci-fi action picture Battle: Los Angeles.

The launch date mirrors the positioning of Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief from this year and The Spiderwick Chronicles from 2008. Both pictures delivered solid but far-from-blockbuster returns: Percy has made $86.3 million to date, while Spiderwick grossed $71.2 million, and both have yet to receive sequel announcements. Percy attempted to be a Greek-mythology version of Harry Potter, but it's not clear what angle I Am Number Four will take at this time.

I Am Number Four appears to be similar to the 1999-2002 television series Roswell with its tale of alien teenagers coming to Earth following the destruction of their planet, only to be hunted further. Smallville creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar are the screenwriters, D.J. Caruso (Disturbia) is the director and Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg are producers.

In other release date news, Warner Bros. has pushed back Going the Distance from Aug. 13 to Aug. 27. On Aug. 13, the Drew Barrymore-Justin Long romantic comedy might have competed for the same audience as the Julia Roberts vehicle Eat, Pray, Love, but shifting to Aug. 27 lets it counter-program two horror movies, The Last Exorcism and Piranha 3D, though typically an end of summer debut is not a bid of confidence. Warner also announced a title update for Legend of the Guardians. It's now called {lnk0}Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, and remains set for Sept. 24.

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