Disney’s Freakier Friday leads this week’s new cinema releases in the UK and Ireland.
Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan reunite for the sequel to the 2003 hit comedy Freaky Friday. The original, which opened with £1.2m and closed on £6.6m, followed teenager Anna (Lohan) swapping bodies with her mother Tess (Curtis).
This time, director Nisha Ganatra ups the stakes with a four-way body swap, introducing a new generation: Anna’s daughter Harper, played by Julia Butters, and soon-to-be stepdaughter Lily, played by Sophia Hammons. Manny Jacinto and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan also join the cast alongside returning members from the first film: Chad Michael Murray as Anna’s childhood crush; Mark Harmon; and Rosalind Chao.
The franchise began when Mary Rodgers’ 1972 book was adapted for the screen in 1976’s Freaky Friday, starring Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris. Subsequent body swap comedies in the series have included Summer Switch and A Billion for Boris, both in 1984; and 1995 TV film Freaky Friday starring Shelley Long and Gaby Hoffman.
Ganatra’s previous comedy drama film, 2019’s Late Night, opened to £427,394 and ended on £1.4m.
Warner Bros launches horror Weapons across 630 sites. The film follows Julia Garner, from Netflix series Ozark, as a teacher who learns that 17 out of the 18 children in her class have gone missing. Josh Brolin plays the grieving father of one of the missing children.
This is writer-director Zach Cregger’s second solo feature after his breakout 2022 horror Barbarian, which opened with £377,919 and closed on £1.2m.
Matlin documentary
Deaf actor Shoshannah Stern turns director and producer for Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore, releasing this weekend through Dogwoof. Stern’s feature debut tells the story of how Matlin became the first deaf actor to win an Oscar – best actress for her performance in Children Of A Lesser God in 1987 at age 21. The story is told via American Sign Language and open captions, instead of conventional voice-overs.
The film launched at Sundance earlier this year and went on to play festivals including Tribeca. Matlin’s recent roles include CODA, winner of the best picture Oscar in 2022.
In cinema not in the English language, Julien Colonna’s Corsican crime drama The Kingdom is opening in 20 sites through Vertigo Releasing having premiered at Cannes last year; and Peccadillo Pictures plays Belgian director Anthony Schatteman’s Berlinale coming-of-age tale Young Hearts in 18 venues.
Trafalgar Releasing is distributing two music documentaries this week. Steven Leckart’s Stans started in 260 sites on Thursday. Named after Eminem’s 2000 rap track ‘Stan’ which has become a byword for a fervent fan, the film explores fan obsession, with insights from Eminem’s collaborators and fans. Saturday also sees Trafalgar’s #RUNSEOKJIN_EP.TOUR In Amsterdam: Live Viewing on 131 screens taking audiences on South Korean boy band BTS Jin’s first ever solo tour.
MusicFilmNetwork is releasing music documentary The Rise And Fall Of The Clash – Redux, a re-cut of Danny Garcia’s 2012 documentary about the iconic rock band.
Directors Matthew O’Neill and Perri Peltz look to expose the dark side of social media in Dartmouth Films’ latest documentary Can’t Look Away. The film investigates the damaging effects on young users and the accountability of tech companies.
Park Circus is re-releasing Ang Lee’s Jane Austen adaptation Sense And Sensibility in 387 cinemas on its 30th anniversary, ahead of the Focus Features and Working Title Films version which is currently in the works.
Major holdovers this weekend include Disney’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Paramount’s The Naked Gun and Universal’s Jurassic World Rebirth.
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