LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Disney's big cat roared even louder at the foreign box office this weekend as "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe" solidified its No. 1 position with an estimated haul of $30.6 million (17.27 million pounds), as its total rose to a mighty $277 million. Combined with its domestic take, "Narnia's" global box office stands at $525 million. Territory totals include $66.5 million in the U.K., and $28.1 million in France. "King Kong," meanwhile, grossed an estimated $24 million from 57 territories. The 26-day international total gross is $272 million, which, combined with "Kong's" domestic tally, puts it global take at about $465 million. [More]

Figurefreaks sends along these scans from the January edition of 3D World Magazine, it features and article called 'Hair Wars: Aslan vs. Kong'. [More]

The chances of New Zealand-made movie blockbusters getting Oscar nominations for anything other than technical awards fell yesterday when they were absent from a major Oscar predictor's nominations. Neither King Kong director Peter Jackson nor Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe director Andrew Adamson were nominated by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) for its annual award. The DGA nominees were George Clooney (Good Night and Good Luck), Paul Haggis (Crash), Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain), Bennett Miller (Capote) and Steven Spielberg (Munich). Adamson was considered an outsider but Jackson was thought to have some chance after receiving a Golden Globe nomination for Best Director and excellent reviews for King Kong. At least four DGA award nominees usually go on to earn Oscar nominations, and their movies usually get Best Picture nominations as well. Oscar predictors say it is highly unusual for directors absent from the DGA nominations to win an Oscar. [More]

This February Manchester will play host to the largest collectors event in the North of England, and to launch the show with a real bang we will be giving you the chance to meet the stars of the greatest tv shows such as Star Trek, Lost and Stargate SG-1, and this Winter’s biggest blockbuster movies, King Kong, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe! [More]

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe edged out King Kong for the top slot at the New Year's weekend box office, trading first place again in a neck-and-neck race, the Associated Press reported. Less than $2 million has separated Kong from Narnia each of the past two weekends. From Dec. 30 through Jan. 2, Narnia took in an estimated $32.8 million, surpassing Kong's four-day gross of $31.6 million. [More]

Young Georgie Henley has been nominated by the Chicago Film Critics as a Most Promising Performer. She is up against; Chris "Ludacris" Bridges (Crash and Hustle & Flow), Miranda July (Me and You and Everyone We Know), Q’Orianka Kilcher (The New World) & Owen Kline (The Squid and the Whale). Congrats Georgie!

Claire writes: Viewers in the UK can see a programme on CS Lewis on BBC2 on Friday, January 6th, at 9 pm. You can read more about in on the BBC's website. [More]

AUCKLAND Two of the biggest fantasy films of the year were made in a small land of the Pacific Ocean. Yes, Hollywood has invaded New Zealand again - but it turns out not all the locals are happy about that. As mean-spirited as it may seem with the recent release of "King Kong" and "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," two blockbuster movies mostly made in New Zealand, there are some film industry insiders in this country who don't like giant apes, witches or magical lions at all. In fact, at their least generous, these insiders wish the mythical creatures had never come to this small Pacific Rim nation. It has the rest of New Zealand's inhabitants, who generally take great pride in the achievements of movies like the award-winning "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, wondering why. [More]

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The four-day New Year's holiday weekend should look similar to the Christmas session just passed as nary a wide release will enter the marketplace. But one major difference this weekend is that New Year's Eve is not the theater-emptying holiday Christmas Eve is. So with a true four-day holiday frame ahead, ticket sales for all films should be higher than the $176.5 million recorded this past weekend. The only bows belong to limited runs of Woody Allen's "Match Point," Richard Shepard's "The Matador," starring Pierce Brosnan, and Chen Kaige's "The Promise." Once again, "King Kong" and "Narnia" will dominate. The films have been trading places in the top two positions for the past two weeks, with "Narnia" taking the lead during several midweek sessions and "Kong" capturing key weekend days. Together, they have provided much-needed relief at the beleaguered box office. [More]