MOVIE NEWS - THIS IS IT

MJ'S NEW MOVIE & CD SET TO PULL IN $400 MILLION

Michael Jackson’s movie and CD may generate as much as $400 million in sales worldwide as fans turn out to see and hear the last live performances of the late King of Pop. “Michael Jackson’s This Is It” album, featuring one new song, goes on sale starting today. The movie with the same title opens Oct. 28 in more than 90 countries, including 3,400 theaters in the U.S., according to Hollywood.com Box-Office.

More than 1,000 U.S. shows were sold out as of Oct. 22, according to the online ticket vendor Fandango.com. Cinemas in London, Sydney, Bangkok and Tokyo also reported sellouts, according to Sony Corp., which is releasing the film and the album. In the U.K., sales topped those of “Harry Potter” and “The Lord of the Rings” at the Vue Entertainment Ltd. chain. The film may generate $300 million to $400 million in global ticket sales, said Jeff Bock, a box-office analyst for Los Angeles-based researcher Exhibitor Relations Co. U.S. sales in the first five days may be $55 million to $60 million, said Jeffrey Hartke, an analyst with Los Angeles-based Hollywood Stock Exchange, which forecasts film performance.

The two-disc album, with the new track “This is It,” as well as “Billie Jean,” “Smooth Criminal” and “Thriller,” may sell 200,000 to 500,000 copies in the U.S., according to Silvio Pietroluongo, director of sales charts at Billboard magazine. The suggested retail price of $17.98 has been marked down to $9.99 at Amazon.com Inc. Jackson’s estate gets 90 percent of profit from the movie after Sony is paid for its role, including marketing and distribution fees, according to two people with knowledge of the arrangement. Concert promoter AEG Live, owned by Denver billionaire Philip Anschutz, gets the remaining 10 percent. The promoter recouped about $36 million it invested in Jackson’s canceled tour from the $60 million Sony paid for rehearsal footage, according to one of the people.

The movie follows Jackson from his initial work on the London concert series to the final dress rehearsal. It includes interviews with friends and collaborators. Director Kenny Ortega declined to forecast sales, saying he didn’t know whether the film would attract more than loyal fans. “I hope the word gets out,” Ortega said in an interview. “I hope there will be some curiosity and interest.”