'Dark Knight Rises' SRO Official Academy Screening Begins With Moment Of Silence For Colorado Tragedy Victims

The Colorado movie theatre shooting tragedy apparently did not dampen the want-to-see factor for The Dark Knight Rises among members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. At Saturday night's official screening at the Academy's 1012 seat Samuel Goldwyn Theatre in Beverly Hills an SRO crowd , the largest so far this year and easily one of the largest in many years , turned out to see the much-awaited conclusion to Christopher Nolan's  Batman trilogy. The Academy crowd was so big that in a highly unusual move for one of these official weekend Acad member screenings ( which often draw far less than capacity audiences) an announcement was made that anyone not having a seat or not happy with the seat they did have could go to the lobby and they would begin filling the Academy's adjacent Little Theatre.

In another highly unusual move for one of these regular screenings Academy President Tom Sherak was on hand and made a few remarks before asking for a moment of silence for the victims of the horrendous tragedy which occurred early Friday morning shortly after the first midnight screening began at the Aurora, Colorado theatre.

I am told this is what he said in part, '' (this was) such a thankless act of violence by a deranged individual who took the lives  of so many innocent people  and wounded so many others. The movie-going experience is one which we should be able to enjoy with others in our community in an environment that is safe. We should be able to go to our local theatres and leave our problems behind and allow the movie to transport us to a place that entertains us and captures our imagination. For now though, we understandably feel angst and uneasiness with this tragic event and question the why and the how. Let us take a moment of silence before we begin to hold those innocent people and their  families in our hearts and in our prayers. Our condolences surely go out to all of them'.

At least one observer told me reaction to the film itself was 'fantastic with much applause at the end'. Although it is far from the studio's or anybody's mind this weekend ' and should be '  Warner Bros is known to have high Oscar hopes for the film. The Academy's switch from five to ten Best Picture nominees in 2009 is widely thought to have been instigated  by the omission of a Best Picture nod for 2008's The Dark Knight which was nominated overall for 8 mostly below-the-line Oscars and won for Sound Editing and most notably a posthumous Best Supporting Actor statuette for Heath Ledger who played the Joker.

Official Academy screenings of The Dark Knight Rises continue Tuesday in New York and Thursday in San Francisco. London-based members saw it last Thursday.

Awards Columnist Pete Hammond - tip him here.

SAG-AFTRA Board Cancels Early Bargaining Of Commercials Contracts

' The National Board unanimously approved an agreement with the Joint Policy Committee, which bargains the Commercials Contracts on behalf of employers, to pursue a 'Clearinghouse Project' designed to address some of the data challenges encountered during the Gross Ratings Point ('GRP') Pilot Project conducted pursuant to the 2009 Commercials Contracts. This agreement results in the mutually agreed upon cancellation of an October early bargaining period regarding GRP that the parties had agreed to during the 2009 negotiations.

In light of the additional preparation time made available by the cancellation of early bargaining, the National Board approved a revised schedule for the Commercials Contracts wages and working conditions process. The process will begin with educational meetings to be held in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago beginning August 7th. Formal W&W meetings will be scheduled to begin after September 10th. The start date of formal negotiations for successor agreements to the 2009 Commercials Contracts has not yet been set.

' The National Board also unanimously approved terminating the legacy SAG Interactive Media Agreement via 60-day notice to producers who had been using the expired contract. Those producers will be invited to transition to the active legacy AFTRA agreement.

' The National Board unanimously approved the first industry-wide music video agreement negotiated with representatives of the major record labels including Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, EMI Music and The Walt Disney Co. and most of their subsidiary labels.

Assistant National Executive Director of Sound Recordings, Randall Himes, joined by National Director of Sound Recordings Stephanie Taub; Western Region Organizing Director, Steve Sidawi; music video negotiating committee members SAG-AFTRA National Board member and dancer Sharon Ferguson (worked with music video artists including Prince and No Doubt); and dancers Aimee Winston (Kylie Minogue), Ava Bernstine (Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears), Danielle Towne, (Lady Gaga, Black Eyed Peas), and Cassidy Noblett (Lady Gaga, Katy Perry), presented the board with the tentative agreement representing the first-ever industry-wide contract with the major record labels covering dancers and other performers on music videos.

Ferguson said, 'I am just bowled over by the board's unanimous vote. This agreement was reached after a long and hard-fought effort. It delivers good terms for dancers and other performers who work in music videos and so much more. It's a historic agreement, but that doesn't really do justice to how proud we are to achieve a contract that sets the first industry-wide standard for wages and working conditions in music video production. That's huge!'

Himes said, 'This is a great first agreement for our union and I'm honored to have led the negotiating team. I thank the board for their unanimous vote of approval and want to highlight the great work of our member negotiating committee, outside counsel Susan Davis of Cohen Weiss and Simon LLP, and most of all, the dancers and all performers who work in music videos ' this is without question their victory.'

The contract officially takes effect on Monday, July 23, 2012.

'Dark Knight Rises' $163M For All-Time 2D Opening Weekend; $77.2M Friday 3rd All-Time Domestic Debut Day And Best 2D Single Day; Tragedy Lowers Grosses

Rentrak Won't Release Worldwide Grosses This Weekend

Warner Bros Won't Report Box Office For 'Dark Knight Rises' All Weekend 'Out Of Respect For The Victims And Their Families'

12 Dead, Dozens Wounded After Mass Shooting By Gunman At Suburban Colorado Theater Showing 'Dark Knight Rises'

SATURDAY 9:30 PM, 12TH UPDATE: It may seem callous to post about less-than-packed to half-empty theaters Saturday around the country and North American and worldwide box office this weekend after the Colorado movie theater tragedy. And of course our hearts go out to those killed and wounded. (I stayed up all Friday post-midnight/pre-dawn reporting on the shooting as the horrendous event unfolded.)  But this is an entertainment business website that tracks movie grosses. And so many filmmakers inside and outside Hollywood worked exhaustively on The Dark Knight Rises ' just as they do on every pic released each year ' that the final product should be examined for its success vis a vis ticket sales. Warner Bros Pictures has decided not to release its box office results this weekend until Monday. Also some other studios. Rentrak won't report worldwide estimates. That said, there can be no doubt that Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures last installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy is huge in terms of domestic grosses. In fact the entire moviegoing weekend should be up around +35% over last year, demonstrating the resilience of the public and their love for watching films in the shared experience of a movie theater. Hopefully, with more security provided, the emotional distress and financial setback caused by one psychotic gunman won't be permanent for theater chains. But the entire movie industry's shock and grieving over the Aurora tragedy is real and intense. Although the national and international debate over the sociological effect of film violence will be ongoing ' and necessary. Now, back to business.

Related: Showtime, USA, CLOO Pulling Violent Programming After Colorado Shooting; TNT Still Airing 'The Dark Knight' 

Related: Networks, Not Warner Bros, Pulled 'Dark Knight Rises' TV Ads

I was told Friday night there were a lot of admissions still to count. But this morning my sources said The Dark Knight Rises brought in $77.2 million Friday (give or take one million) from 4,404 domestic theaters. That's the 3rd all-time opening day and the best 2D single day. There was indeed a huge drop Saturday mostly because of the addition of those $30.6M in midnight shows, including $2.2M IMAX grosses, in Friday's tally. Previous installment The Dark Knight dropped -29% its Saturday. I can now tell you that The Dark Knight Rises made $46.2M Saturday and is projected to be $39.3M Sunday. My sources now say the 3-day weekend cume looks around $163M with the caveat that the Colorado tragedy may have an impossible-to-predict effect until Monday actuals. This still will be the largest grossing 2D North American opening weekend ever, past 2008's The Dark Knight at $158M. However, despite the 'like nothing ever happened' box office momentum which Warner Bros saw Friday morning, it is clear that Dark Knight Rises numbers won't be record-breaking. Yes, because of pre-sales, midnights shattered the $18.4M generated by Marvel's The Avengers earlier this summer. But The Dark Knight Rises didn't beat Avengers' $80.5M Friday and won't come near Avengers' all-time $207.4M collected from 2D, Digital 3D, RealD, and IMAX 3D.

Here's the Top Ten list based on weekend estimates:

1. The Dark Knight Rises (Legendary/Warner Bros) NEW [4,404 Theaters]
Friday $77.2M, Saturday $46.2M, Weekend $163M

2. Ice Age 4 (Blue Sky/Fox) Week 2 [3,886 Theaters]
Friday $6.8M, Saturday $8.0M, Weekend $20.6M (-56%), Cume $90.1M

3. The Amazing Spider-Man (Columbia/Sony) Week 3 [3,753 Theaters]
Friday $3.4M, Saturday $4.4M, Weekend $11.1M, Cume $229.1M

4. Ted (MRC/Universal) Week 4 [3,214 Theaters]
Friday $3.1M, Saturday $4.0M, Weekend $10.3M, Cume $180.7M

5. Brave (Pixar/Disney) Week 5 [2,899 Theaters]
Friday $1.9M, Saturday $2.3M, Weekend $5.7M, Cume $209.3M

6. Magic Mike (Warner Bros) Week 4 [2,606 Theaters]
Friday $1.6M, Weekend $4.3M, Cume $102.1M

7. Savages (Universal) Week 3 [2,336 Theaters]
Friday $986K, Weekend $3.3M, Cume $40.0M

8. Madea's Witness Protection (TPerry/Lionsgate) Week 4 [1,540 Theaters]
Friday $744K, Weekend $2.2M, Cume $60.3M

9. Moonrise Kingdom (Focus Features) Week 9 [895 Theaters]
Friday $551K, Weekend $1.9M, Cume $36.2M

10. Madagascar 3 (DreamWorks Anim/Par) Week 7 [1,261 Theaters]
Friday $447K, Weekend $1.5M, Cume $207.8M

FRIDAY 6 PM, 9TH UPDATE: No major box office changes to report except that The Dark Knight Rises is running less today than Marvel's The Avengers but had more midnight business. So the two films are running neck and neck. As of 6 PM, The Dark Knight Rises in 4,404 domestic theaters was Friday $80M and weekend $180M estimates.

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 2 PM, 8TH UPDATE: Based on matinee projections, The Dark Knight Rises is looking to open with a gargantuan $80M-85M today (which includes $30.6M from midnights). That's about even with Marvel's The Avengers opening Friday of $80.5M. Hollywood is making weekend projections of $180M-$200M but Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures remain mute.

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 12 PM, 7TH UPDATE: Warner Bros sources tell me now they're seeing no decrease in movie ticket grosses for The Dark Knight Rises. 'What happened in Colorado is a tragedy, make no mistake about it. But East Coast numbers are coming in like nothing ever happened. We grossed half a million dollars by 10 AM just in Manhattan.' One reason for that is because most of today's grosses, and a good portion of this weekend's, consisted of $30M in pre-sales. So whether moviegoers show up or not to the theaters doesn't matter: they still paid for their tickets. The real-time effect of the Aurora movie theater shooting likely won't be felt at the box office until Saturday at the earliest and more likely Sunday and next week and next weekend as pre-release sales decrease. 'One incident, as horrific as it is, does not necessarily cause people to want to change their patterns,' a Warner Bros exec explained to me. 'Young people still want to go to movie theaters and they still want to see this movie.'

Meanwhile, the official North American midnights number for The Dark Knight Rises is public now: it opened with $30.640M  from 3,825 locations (for $8,010 per location). Included in the overall total are IMAX grosses of $2.232M from 330 locations (for $7,041 per location). This 2D midnights number shatters the $18.4M midnights generated by 3D Marvel's The Avengers earlier this summer. Still, with international grosses from 9 countries totalling $10.4M, that's already $71M worldwide for the mega-pic before it's even in wide release today. Remember that the largest grossing 2D North American opening weekend ever remains 2008's The Dark Knight at $158M ' and there's no doubt The Dark Knight Rises will beat that. (Not adjusted for inflation or higher ticket prices). But can it beat Avengers' all-time $207.4M collected from 2D, Digital 3D, RealD, and IMAX 3D theaters?

At its widest release, The Dark Knight Rises will debut in 4,404 domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday, including 332 IMAX locations. Hollywood now believes chances are slim that The Dark Knight Rises now can beat The Avengers weekend record because of the fear, panic, and security concerns resulting from today's movie theater shooting. [And, yes, I know it seems callous for me to post about the tragedy in relationship to box office. But this is an entertainment business website that tracks movie grosses.]

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 6:30 AM, 6TH UPDATE: I've just learned that Warner Bros' and Legendary Pictures' 2D The Dark Knight Rises is 'headed north of $28M' for its 3,700 midnight showings of the pic.

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 3 AM, 5TH UPDATE: Fans waited in long lines for hours despite the sweltering heat and the torrential rains in some parts of North America just to attend one of the 3,700 Thursday midnight  show locations for  Warner Bros' and Legendary Pictures' 2D The Dark Knight Rises. Now my sources are tracking this final installment of Chris Nolan's Batman trilogy to open with a whopping $27+M. 'The West Coast is still selling tickets with some theatres adding 3 AM shows,' a Warner Bros exec told me. 'This is effing huge!' The Dark Knight Rises' 2D midnights number shatters the $18.4M midnights generated by 3D Marvel's The Avengers earlier this summer. With pre-sales of $30M and international grosses from 9 countries totalling $10.4M, that's already $67.4M worldwide for the mega-pic before it's even in wide release. Hollywood began emailing me they thought  this weekend could generate between $185M-$210M in domestic grosses and possibly set a new weekend record.

But then tragedy struck. Colorado's mass shooting happened around 12:39 AM today leaving 14 dead and 50 wounded after a lone gunman opened fire in a packed suburban movie theater at the Aurora Town Center where The Dark Knight Rises was showing just after midnight. Now no one in the movie business knows how this terrible event will affect box office today. Despite isolated incidents, nothing on this horrific scale has ever occurred inside film theaters. 'Not what you expect to happen when you're waiting in line to go to the blockbuster film of the summer,' one local TV anchor told viewers.

Moviegoers at first thought the gunshots were part of the film's action sequences. Police told TV stations the shooting was first reported at 12:39 AM after the gunman 'just appeared' from the front of Theater 9. Then police arrived and found the suspect in the rear of the theater. The adult male attired in protective gear had a rifle and two other guns when he was taken into custody, authorities said.

In other parts of the country, first fans lined up for hours ahead of time to see The Dark Knight Rises at the midnight screenings at NYC's AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13 Theater. Scalpers  had been selling those tickets for $65 and as much as $100 for days prior. At the AMC Uptown in Washington, crowds endured torrential rain and lightning but kept standing in line even when the theater didn't open its doors on time.

THURSDAY 7:15 PM, 4TH UPDATE: The Dark Knight Rises began its international release Thursday by 'dominating everywhere', according to my sources. I've learned the foreign gross so far is an incredible $10.4M from only 9 countries. This is 83% higher than 2008's The Dark Knight in the same markets. (Not calculating for inflation and higher ticket prices.) The 3 key territories that opened today were: Australia AUD$3.66M (US$3.74M) from 628 screens. That's 60% ahead of The Dark Knight's opening day. 'This is particularly spectacular considering that today is not a holiday versus TDK's holiday opening day,' an exec tells me. As good as Chris Nolan's Batpic finale's opening day is, it was well below Marvel's The Avengers, which smashed the Australian box office on its opening day of release with a record breaking AUD$6M (USD$6.2M). Of course Avengers was 3D and also opened on one of Australia's biggest holidays: ANZAC. Whereas The Dark Knight Rises opening didn't include a holiday. And Korea KRW 3.15b (US$2.7m) from 1059 screens, which is 131% higher than The Dark Knight's opening. And Taiwan NT$ 26.3m (US$878k) from 228 screens, which is 175% ahead of The Dark Knight. Australia began The Dark Knight Rises foreign rollout: Warner Bros this coming weekend is releasing into only 17 international markets, representing 6,300 screens. These include 4 of the Top Ten markets: UK, Spain, Australia, and Korea.

Related: 'Dark Knight Rises' Starts Foreign 'Dominating' 9 Countries

THURSDAY 6 PM, 3RD UPDATE: A Warner Bros executive just told me, The Dark Knight Rises is tearing up the box office at midnight. It should pass Marvel's The Avengers' $18.7M as the largest superhero midnight show of all time.' And remember: Avengers also holds the domestic record for the largest opening weekend gross. Warner Bros. Pictures' and Legendary Pictures' mega-movie has 2,500 sold-out showtimes on Fandango, and today is trending to be one of that big online ticket vendor's top-selling Thursdays in the company's 12'year history. Most interesting is that Chris Nolan's Batman trilogy finale is outpacing the early summer blockbuster Marvel's The Avengers in ticket sales at the same point in Fandango's sales cycle. 'Today's ticket sales are relentless, just like the action in the movie,' a Fandango executive just told me. Disney began releasing Avengers in Digital 3D, RealD and IMAX 3D after midnight into about 2,500 locations around the U.S. and Canada, and some theaters kept playing it around the clock into the wee hours. Whether The Dark Knight Rises will screen 24/7 on Friday will depend on how many theaters can convince staff to work overtime. This actioner opens in a whopping 3,700 midnight domestic locations. Like the big theater chain did with Avengers, AMC will be hosting a special showings in IMAX and 2D ' the entire Batman trilogy beginning at 6 PM for $40/$25 complete with commorative poster and special lanyard. At its widest release, The Dark Knight Rises will debut in 4,404 domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday, including 332 IMAX locations.

EXCLUSIVE THURSDAY, 2ND UPDATE: According to Fandango, domestic box office online ticket sales for Warner Bros' and Legendary Pictures' The Dark Knight Rises currently represents 91% of Thursday's ticket sales. MovieTickets pegged their number at 87.5% for Wednesday. Earlier this week, Fandango surveyed the pic's ticket-buyers and discovered that: 97% said the darker tone made them more interested in seeing the movie, 89% claimed the new villain Bane made them excited to see the film, 72% consider themselves fans of director Christopher Nolan, 62% said they're excited by the fact that more than an hour of the film was shot in IMAX, and 58% said that Christian Bale was the actor they most preferred as Batman.

Warner Bros should be announcing the first foreign box office results. The Dark Knight Rises opens in only 17 international markets this weekend, representing 6,300 screens. These include 4 of the Top Ten movie markets: UK, Spain, Australia, and Korea.

In North America, I can report exclusively that The Dark Knight Rises has already banked $25M in pre-sales.

EXCLUSIVE WEDNESDAY: Here we go again! Another gigantic Hollywood comic book blockbuster opening just after Thursday's clocks strike midnight. But can The Dark Knight Rises beat Marvel's The Avengers in weekend grosses and records? Some moguls are telling me no, some moguls are telling me yes. Remember that the largest grossing 2D North American opening weekend ever remains 2008's The Dark Knight at $158M ' and there's no doubt The Dark Knight Rises will best that by a lot, maybe as much as $195+M. (Not adjusted for inflation or higher ticket prices). But can it best Avengers' all-time $207.4M collected from 2D, Digital 3D, RealD, and IMAX 3D theaters? In summary, the reasons pro are: kids are out of school, people are on vacation, this is the last and scariest of the series. The reasons con are: it's only a 2D movie whereas Avengers made 52% of its money from 3D, it has a 21-minute longer running time than Avengers', this is a movie about one caped crusader with no superpowers whereas Avengers was billed as the 'Superhero Team-Up Of A Lifetime', it's following both Avengers and The Amazing Spider-Man this summer, and the Viacom-DirecTV battle has prevented a lot of Dark Knight Rises TV ads from appearing. Now the only question is how big is big for this $250M film?

MovieTickets.com tells me the pic scooped up 80% of all online ticket sales for Tuesday and Fandango 85%. (The figure for Avengers was 95% for that Thursday.) MovieTickets surveys found that, of the people aware of The Dark Knight Rises, 78% said they would see it opening weekend. Overall, on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 being little or no interest and 5 being significant interest in seeing it in a movie theater, it averaged 4.8 out of 5 for intent to see. Scalpers reportedly are re-selling The Dark Knight Rises' midnight IMAX tickets for $65-$100 apiece on both Craigslist and StubHub  for NYC's AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13. ' higher even than for Avengers. Yet this may be my favorite Dark Knight Rises pre-release factoid so far: 'All the major circuits have asked for more frequent pickups from their Brink's Truck drivers to deposit the record amount of cash they are anticipating,' a Warner Bros exec told me today.

Related: 'Marvel's The Avengers': Records & Factoids
Related: 'THE AVENGERS' NOW BIGGEST OPENER!

This final installment in its Batman trilogy directed by Chris Nolan will be playing in a whopping 3,700 midnight locations around North America and then 4,404 domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday including 332 IMAX locations. (Nolan utilized IMAX cameras for an hour of the footage from the film. That's even more extensively than he did on The Dark Knight, the first time ever that a major feature film was partially shot with IMAX cameras.) But don't expect a gigantic foreign number right away. Remember that Disney's international gross of $441.5M was collected because The Avengers played almost everywhere around the globe for the first 12 days including Friday in Russia ($17.9M) and Saturday in China ($17.4M). By contrast, Warner Bros this coming weekend is releasing The Dark Knight Rises into only 17 international markets, representing 6,300 screens. These include 4 of the Top Ten movie markets: UK, Spain, Australia, and Korea. The Dark Knight Rises already has taken £1 million in advance booking at BFI IMAX, breaking all previous sales records.

The studio will open another 40 markets over the second weekend and include all major markets with the exception of Italy (August) and China where The China Film Group, which sets release dates for U.S. films, wants to pit The Dark Knight Rises against Sony's The Amazing Spider-Man on August 30th. 'That August date is not written in stone, and we are in talks with China Film to find a date that works for everybody,' a Warner Bros exec tells Deadline. 'Warner Bros would never not release the film in China.' In total overseas, the film is projected to show on approximately 20,000 foreign screens.

Meanwhile Nolan has been hating on the pre-release comparisons of his pic with Avengers: 'I don't want to be just a superhero movie. I want to be our movie,' he told EW. 'But I don't want to seem arrogant, either. I just want people to come into the theater with only the two previous [Batman] movies in their heads.' As for this finale, Nolan said 'The Lord of the Rings trilogy was in the back of our minds the entire time we were making these. There are very few great third films. There are certain third films that exist to fulfill a requirement for a sequel. I wanted a third film that had something to say, that was a conclusion to a larger story.'

Related: Co-Financier Thomas Tull Makes 'Dark Knight Rises' Cameo
Related: Warner Bros Civil War? Its Rotten Tomatoes Suspends Comments On Its 'Dark Knight Rises' After Movie Reviewers Threatened

Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.

UPDATE: Warner Bros Won't Report Box Office For 'Dark Knight Rises' All Weekend

BREAKING' UPDATE: Warner Bros Pictures just issued this statement confirming what I reported first:

'Out of respect for the victims and their families, Warner Bros. Pictures will not be reporting box office numbers for The Dark Knight Rises throughout the weekend. Box office numbers will be released on Monday.'

EXCLUSIVE 3:15 PM: I've just been told by a Warner Bros spokeswoman that the studio may do this 'out of sensitivity to people'. Through midday today the studio was reporting The Dark Knight Rises grosses internationally and domestically as usual. Now it may suspend its box office reporting all weekend for Christopher Nolan's final Batman trilogy installment. A final decision has not yet been made. It would be a highly unusual step for a company in the movie business that's part of publicly owned Time Warner. And it is certainly the studio's right to stay mute the rest of the weekend. However, the numbers will still get out because Rentrak reports grosses all through the weekend. So reporters like me will know how The Dark Knight Rises is doing.

Related: 'Dark Knight Rises' To $80M-$85 Friday: Warner Bros Seeing No Slowdown In Box Office Business: $125.5M Worldwide: $30.6M Midnights, $30M Pre-Sales, $10.4M International

Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.

'Dark Knight Rises' $77.2M Friday; Opens 3rd All-Time Domestic Opening Day And Best 2D Single Day; $170M All-Time 2D Debut Weekend; Tragedy Lowers Grosses

Rentrak Won't Release Worldwide Grosses This Weekend

Warner Bros Won't Report Box Office For 'Dark Knight Rises' All Weekend 'Out Of Respect For The Victims And Their Families'

12 Dead, Dozens Wounded After Mass Shooting By Gunman At Suburban Colorado Theater Showing 'Dark Knight Rises'

SATURDAY 6:45 AM, 11TH UPDATE: It may seem callous to post about North American and worldwide box office this weekend after the Colorado movie theater tragedy. And of course our hearts go out to those killed and wounded. (I stayed up all Friday post-midnight/pre-dawn reporting on the shooting as the horrendous event unfolded.)  But this is an entertainment business website that tracks movie grosses. And so many filmmakers inside and outside Hollywood worked exhaustively on The Dark Knight Rises ' just as they do on every pic released each year ' that the final product should be examined for its success vis a vis ticket sales. Warner Bros Pictures has decided not to release its box office results this weekend until Monday. Rentrak won't report worldwide estimates. That said, there can be no doubt that Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures last installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy is huge in terms of domestic grosses. In fact the entire moviegoing weekend should be up around +37% over last year, demonstrating the resilience of the public and their love for watching films in the shared experience of a movie theater. Hopefully, with more security provided, the emotional distress and financial setback caused by one psychotic gunman won't be permanent for theater chains. But the entire movie industry's shock and grieving over the Aurora tragedy is real and intense. Although the national and international debate over the sociological effect of film violence will be ongoing ' and necessary. Now, back to business.

Related: Showtime, USA, CLOO Pulling Violent Programming After Colorado Shooting; TNT Still Airing 'The Dark Knight' 

Related: Networks, Not Warner Bros, Pulled 'Dark Knight Rises' TV Ads

I was told last night there were a lot of admissions still to count. But this morning The Dark Knight Rises looks to be in the $77.2 million range Friday ' give or take one million ' from 4,404 domestic theaters. That's the 3rd all-time opening day and the best 2D single day. Look for a huge drop Saturday because of the $30.6M in midnight shows, including $2.2M IMAX grosses. (Previous installment The Dark Knight dropped -29% its Saturday, and this should be no different.) My sources say the 3-day weekend cume looks to be in the $170M range with the caveat that the Colorado tragedy may have an impossible-to-predict effect. This will be the largest grossing 2D North American opening weekend ever, past 2008's The Dark Knight at $158M. However, despite the 'like nothing ever happened' box office momentum which Warner Bros saw Friday morning, it is clear that The Dark Knight Rises numbers won't be record-breaking. Yes, because of pre-sales, midnights shattered the $18.4M midnights generated by Marvel's The Avengers earlier this summer. But it didn't beat Avengers' $80.5M Friday and won't beat Avengers' all-time $207.4M collected from 2D, Digital 3D, RealD, and IMAX 3D theaters.

Here's the Top Ten list based on Friday estimates:

1. The Dark Knight Rises (Legendary/Warner Bros) NEW [4,404 Theaters]
Friday $77.2M, Weekend $170M

2. Ice Age 4 (Blue Sky/Fox) Week 2 [3,886 Theaters]
Friday $6.6M (-50%), Weekend $21.6M, Cume $90.1M

3. The Amazing Spider-Man (Columbia/Sony) Week 3 [3,753 Theaters]
Friday $3.3M, Weekend $11.4M, Cume $229.1M

4. Ted (MRC/Universal) Week 4 [3,214 Theaters]
Friday $3.1M, Weekend $10.2M, Cume $180.7M

5. Brave (Pixar/Disney) Week 5 [2,899 Theaters]
Friday $1.9M, Weekend $6.5M, Cume $209.3M

6. Magic Mike (Warner Bros) Week 4 [2,606 Theaters]
Friday $1.6M, Weekend $4.3M, Cume $102.1M

7. Savages (Universal) Week 3 [2,336 Theaters]
Friday $986K, Weekend $3.3M, Cume $40.0M

8. Madea's Witness Protection (TPerry/Lionsgate) Week 4 [1,540 Theaters]
Friday $744K, Weekend $2.2M, Cume $60.3M

9. Moonrise Kingdom (Focus Features) Week 9 [895 Theaters]
Friday $551K, Weekend $1.9M, Cume $36.2M

10. To Rome with Love (Sony Classics) Week 5 [552 Theaters]
Friday $401K, Weekend $1.5M, Cume $11.2M

FRIDAY 6 PM, 9TH UPDATE: No major box office changes to report except that The Dark Knight Rises is running less today than Marvel's The Avengers but had more midnight business. So the two films are running neck and neck. As of 6 PM, The Dark Knight Rises in 4,404 domestic theaters was Friday $80M and weekend $180M estimates.

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 2 PM, 8TH UPDATE: Based on matinee projections, The Dark Knight Rises is looking to open with a gargantuan $80M-85M today (which includes $30.6M from midnights). That's about even with Marvel's The Avengers opening Friday of $80.5M. Hollywood is making weekend projections of $180M-$200M but Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures remain mute.

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 12 PM, 7TH UPDATE: Warner Bros sources tell me now they're seeing no decrease in movie ticket grosses for The Dark Knight Rises. 'What happened in Colorado is a tragedy, make no mistake about it. But East Coast numbers are coming in like nothing ever happened. We grossed half a million dollars by 10 AM just in Manhattan.' One reason for that is because most of today's grosses, and a good portion of this weekend's, consisted of $30M in pre-sales. So whether moviegoers show up or not to the theaters doesn't matter: they still paid for their tickets. The real-time effect of the Aurora movie theater shooting likely won't be felt at the box office until Saturday at the earliest and more likely Sunday and next week and next weekend as pre-release sales decrease. 'One incident, as horrific as it is, does not necessarily cause people to want to change their patterns,' a Warner Bros exec explained to me. 'Young people still want to go to movie theaters and they still want to see this movie.'

Meanwhile, the official North American midnights number for The Dark Knight Rises is public now: it opened with $30.640M  from 3,825 locations (for $8,010 per location). Included in the overall total are IMAX grosses of $2.232M from 330 locations (for $7,041 per location). This 2D midnights number shatters the $18.4M midnights generated by 3D Marvel's The Avengers earlier this summer. Still, with international grosses from 9 countries totalling $10.4M, that's already $71M worldwide for the mega-pic before it's even in wide release today. Remember that the largest grossing 2D North American opening weekend ever remains 2008's The Dark Knight at $158M ' and there's no doubt The Dark Knight Rises will beat that. (Not adjusted for inflation or higher ticket prices). But can it beat Avengers' all-time $207.4M collected from 2D, Digital 3D, RealD, and IMAX 3D theaters?

At its widest release, The Dark Knight Rises will debut in 4,404 domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday, including 332 IMAX locations. Hollywood now believes chances are slim that The Dark Knight Rises now can beat The Avengers weekend record because of the fear, panic, and security concerns resulting from today's movie theater shooting. [And, yes, I know it seems callous for me to post about the tragedy in relationship to box office. But this is an entertainment business website that tracks movie grosses.]

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 6:30 AM, 6TH UPDATE: I've just learned that Warner Bros' and Legendary Pictures' 2D The Dark Knight Rises is 'headed north of $28M' for its 3,700 midnight showings of the pic.

EXCLUSIVE' FRIDAY 3 AM, 5TH UPDATE: Fans waited in long lines for hours despite the sweltering heat and the torrential rains in some parts of North America just to attend one of the 3,700 Thursday midnight  show locations for  Warner Bros' and Legendary Pictures' 2D The Dark Knight Rises. Now my sources are tracking this final installment of Chris Nolan's Batman trilogy to open with a whopping $27+M. 'The West Coast is still selling tickets with some theatres adding 3 AM shows,' a Warner Bros exec told me. 'This is effing huge!' The Dark Knight Rises' 2D midnights number shatters the $18.4M midnights generated by 3D Marvel's The Avengers earlier this summer. With pre-sales of $30M and international grosses from 9 countries totalling $10.4M, that's already $67.4M worldwide for the mega-pic before it's even in wide release. Hollywood began emailing me they thought  this weekend could generate between $185M-$210M in domestic grosses and possibly set a new weekend record.

But then tragedy struck. Colorado's mass shooting happened around 12:39 AM today leaving 14 dead and 50 wounded after a lone gunman opened fire in a packed suburban movie theater at the Aurora Town Center where The Dark Knight Rises was showing just after midnight. Now no one in the movie business knows how this terrible event will affect box office today. Despite isolated incidents, nothing on this horrific scale has ever occurred inside film theaters. 'Not what you expect to happen when you're waiting in line to go to the blockbuster film of the summer,' one local TV anchor told viewers.

Moviegoers at first thought the gunshots were part of the film's action sequences. Police told TV stations the shooting was first reported at 12:39 AM after the gunman 'just appeared' from the front of Theater 9. Then police arrived and found the suspect in the rear of the theater. The adult male attired in protective gear had a rifle and two other guns when he was taken into custody, authorities said.

In other parts of the country, first fans lined up for hours ahead of time to see The Dark Knight Rises at the midnight screenings at NYC's AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13 Theater. Scalpers  had been selling those tickets for $65 and as much as $100 for days prior. At the AMC Uptown in Washington, crowds endured torrential rain and lightning but kept standing in line even when the theater didn't open its doors on time.

THURSDAY 7:15 PM, 4TH UPDATE: The Dark Knight Rises began its international release Thursday by 'dominating everywhere', according to my sources. I've learned the foreign gross so far is an incredible $10.4M from only 9 countries. This is 83% higher than 2008's The Dark Knight in the same markets. (Not calculating for inflation and higher ticket prices.) The 3 key territories that opened today were: Australia AUD$3.66M (US$3.74M) from 628 screens. That's 60% ahead of The Dark Knight's opening day. 'This is particularly spectacular considering that today is not a holiday versus TDK's holiday opening day,' an exec tells me. As good as Chris Nolan's Batpic finale's opening day is, it was well below Marvel's The Avengers, which smashed the Australian box office on its opening day of release with a record breaking AUD$6M (USD$6.2M). Of course Avengers was 3D and also opened on one of Australia's biggest holidays: ANZAC. Whereas The Dark Knight Rises opening didn't include a holiday. And Korea KRW 3.15b (US$2.7m) from 1059 screens, which is 131% higher than The Dark Knight's opening. And Taiwan NT$ 26.3m (US$878k) from 228 screens, which is 175% ahead of The Dark Knight. Australia began The Dark Knight Rises foreign rollout: Warner Bros this coming weekend is releasing into only 17 international markets, representing 6,300 screens. These include 4 of the Top Ten markets: UK, Spain, Australia, and Korea.

Related: 'Dark Knight Rises' Starts Foreign 'Dominating' 9 Countries

THURSDAY 6 PM, 3RD UPDATE: A Warner Bros executive just told me, The Dark Knight Rises is tearing up the box office at midnight. It should pass Marvel's The Avengers' $18.7M as the largest superhero midnight show of all time.' And remember: Avengers also holds the domestic record for the largest opening weekend gross. Warner Bros. Pictures' and Legendary Pictures' mega-movie has 2,500 sold-out showtimes on Fandango, and today is trending to be one of that big online ticket vendor's top-selling Thursdays in the company's 12'year history. Most interesting is that Chris Nolan's Batman trilogy finale is outpacing the early summer blockbuster Marvel's The Avengers in ticket sales at the same point in Fandango's sales cycle. 'Today's ticket sales are relentless, just like the action in the movie,' a Fandango executive just told me. Disney began releasing Avengers in Digital 3D, RealD and IMAX 3D after midnight into about 2,500 locations around the U.S. and Canada, and some theaters kept playing it around the clock into the wee hours. Whether The Dark Knight Rises will screen 24/7 on Friday will depend on how many theaters can convince staff to work overtime. This actioner opens in a whopping 3,700 midnight domestic locations. Like the big theater chain did with Avengers, AMC will be hosting a special showings in IMAX and 2D ' the entire Batman trilogy beginning at 6 PM for $40/$25 complete with commorative poster and special lanyard. At its widest release, The Dark Knight Rises will debut in 4,404 domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday, including 332 IMAX locations.

EXCLUSIVE THURSDAY, 2ND UPDATE: According to Fandango, domestic box office online ticket sales for Warner Bros' and Legendary Pictures' The Dark Knight Rises currently represents 91% of Thursday's ticket sales. MovieTickets pegged their number at 87.5% for Wednesday. Earlier this week, Fandango surveyed the pic's ticket-buyers and discovered that: 97% said the darker tone made them more interested in seeing the movie, 89% claimed the new villain Bane made them excited to see the film, 72% consider themselves fans of director Christopher Nolan, 62% said they're excited by the fact that more than an hour of the film was shot in IMAX, and 58% said that Christian Bale was the actor they most preferred as Batman.

Warner Bros should be announcing the first foreign box office results. The Dark Knight Rises opens in only 17 international markets this weekend, representing 6,300 screens. These include 4 of the Top Ten movie markets: UK, Spain, Australia, and Korea.

In North America, I can report exclusively that The Dark Knight Rises has already banked $25M in pre-sales.

EXCLUSIVE WEDNESDAY: Here we go again! Another gigantic Hollywood comic book blockbuster opening just after Thursday's clocks strike midnight. But can The Dark Knight Rises beat Marvel's The Avengers in weekend grosses and records? Some moguls are telling me no, some moguls are telling me yes. Remember that the largest grossing 2D North American opening weekend ever remains 2008's The Dark Knight at $158M ' and there's no doubt The Dark Knight Rises will best that by a lot, maybe as much as $195+M. (Not adjusted for inflation or higher ticket prices). But can it best Avengers' all-time $207.4M collected from 2D, Digital 3D, RealD, and IMAX 3D theaters? In summary, the reasons pro are: kids are out of school, people are on vacation, this is the last and scariest of the series. The reasons con are: it's only a 2D movie whereas Avengers made 52% of its money from 3D, it has a 21-minute longer running time than Avengers', this is a movie about one caped crusader with no superpowers whereas Avengers was billed as the 'Superhero Team-Up Of A Lifetime', it's following both Avengers and The Amazing Spider-Man this summer, and the Viacom-DirecTV battle has prevented a lot of Dark Knight Rises TV ads from appearing. Now the only question is how big is big for this $250M film?

MovieTickets.com tells me the pic scooped up 80% of all online ticket sales for Tuesday and Fandango 85%. (The figure for Avengers was 95% for that Thursday.) MovieTickets surveys found that, of the people aware of The Dark Knight Rises, 78% said they would see it opening weekend. Overall, on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 being little or no interest and 5 being significant interest in seeing it in a movie theater, it averaged 4.8 out of 5 for intent to see. Scalpers reportedly are re-selling The Dark Knight Rises' midnight IMAX tickets for $65-$100 apiece on both Craigslist and StubHub  for NYC's AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13. ' higher even than for Avengers. Yet this may be my favorite Dark Knight Rises pre-release factoid so far: 'All the major circuits have asked for more frequent pickups from their Brink's Truck drivers to deposit the record amount of cash they are anticipating,' a Warner Bros exec told me today.

Related: 'Marvel's The Avengers': Records & Factoids
Related: 'THE AVENGERS' NOW BIGGEST OPENER!

This final installment in its Batman trilogy directed by Chris Nolan will be playing in a whopping 3,700 midnight locations around North America and then 4,404 domestic theaters from Friday through Sunday including 332 IMAX locations. (Nolan utilized IMAX cameras for an hour of the footage from the film. That's even more extensively than he did on The Dark Knight, the first time ever that a major feature film was partially shot with IMAX cameras.) But don't expect a gigantic foreign number right away. Remember that Disney's international gross of $441.5M was collected because The Avengers played almost everywhere around the globe for the first 12 days including Friday in Russia ($17.9M) and Saturday in China ($17.4M). By contrast, Warner Bros this coming weekend is releasing The Dark Knight Rises into only 17 international markets, representing 6,300 screens. These include 4 of the Top Ten movie markets: UK, Spain, Australia, and Korea. The Dark Knight Rises already has taken £1 million in advance booking at BFI IMAX, breaking all previous sales records.

The studio will open another 40 markets over the second weekend and include all major markets with the exception of Italy (August) and China where The China Film Group, which sets release dates for U.S. films, wants to pit The Dark Knight Rises against Sony's The Amazing Spider-Man on August 30th. 'That August date is not written in stone, and we are in talks with China Film to find a date that works for everybody,' a Warner Bros exec tells Deadline. 'Warner Bros would never not release the film in China.' In total overseas, the film is projected to show on approximately 20,000 foreign screens.

Meanwhile Nolan has been hating on the pre-release comparisons of his pic with Avengers: 'I don't want to be just a superhero movie. I want to be our movie,' he told EW. 'But I don't want to seem arrogant, either. I just want people to come into the theater with only the two previous [Batman] movies in their heads.' As for this finale, Nolan said 'The Lord of the Rings trilogy was in the back of our minds the entire time we were making these. There are very few great third films. There are certain third films that exist to fulfill a requirement for a sequel. I wanted a third film that had something to say, that was a conclusion to a larger story.'

Related: Co-Financier Thomas Tull Makes 'Dark Knight Rises' Cameo
Related: Warner Bros Civil War? Its Rotten Tomatoes Suspends Comments On Its 'Dark Knight Rises' After Movie Reviewers Threatened

Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.

Rentrak Won't Release Worldwide Grosses This Weekend

Jim Zak, Rentrak Theatrical International's VP of client services, told me, 'It's a corporate decision.' The movie industry's definitive box office reporting institution announced late Friday: 'Please be advised, Rentrak will not be sending Worldwide Weekend Estimates this weekend.' No mention of the Colorado movie theater shooting was mentioned by the company.

UPDATE: Warner Bros Won't Report B.O. For 'Dark Knight Rises' All Weekend

Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.

Cinemark Says It's 'Working Closely' With Aurora Police

Cinemark is deeply saddened about this tragic incident. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families and loved ones, our employees, and the Aurora community. We are grateful for the quick and professional reaction of all local law enforcement and emergency responders. Cinemark is working closely with the Aurora Police Department and local law enforcement.