Friday’s box office results spelled trouble for the once mighty “Saw” franchise in the form of Paramount’s upstart horror pick-up “Paranormal Activity”. Luckily for film fans, Saturday’s attendance rates could offer no quarter to the fearsome Jigsaw killer who finished outside of first place for the first time since the original “Saw” debuted back in 2004. Playing in about 1,000 fewer venues, “Paranormal” didn’t just manage to keep its lead throughout the three day frame, its solid performance also kept those “Saw VI” numbers down to about half of what the film’s predecessors averaged from 2005 to 2008.

“Paranormal Activity” continued its impressive run on Friday as the horror phenom managed to wrestle first place away from the “Saw” franchise for the first time in four years. “Saw VI” could only scare up an estimated $7 million from its 3,036 venues which means that any hope of another $30 million weekend for the Lionsgate series is now lost. So sad. “Paranormal” went from 760 screens last weekend to just shy of 2,000 on Friday, earning another $7.6 million in the process. The pre-holiday week was not nearly as kind to Friday’s also-rans. Relativity/Universal’s “Cirque de Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant” fell short of the top five with $2.2 million, proving that sticking ‘vampire’ in the title is not enough to lure “Twilight” fans away from the coming of “New Moon”. The news was even worse for Summit/Imagi’s “Astro Boy” which could only manage a $1.8 million debut from over 3,000 screens.  Last weekend’s top earner, “Where the Wild Things Are”, fell a disappointing 64% to third place while Fox Searchlight’s “Amelia”, on 818 screens, fell off the radar altogether. Check back tomorrow for complete details and the final three day estimates.

Since I recently interviewed Kristen Bell for “Couples Retreat”, when I walked in to talk with her about “Astro Boy”, I didn’t know what to expect. Would she remember talking to me two weeks ago? I also wondered if I could incorporate just speaking with her into this new interview. Thankfully, she remembered me and was cool talking about anything…including explaining that she just learned Koala Bears are drug addicts!

Of course the reason I got to speak with her was Summit Entertainment’s new animated movie “Astro Boy”.  The film hits theaters this weekend and it’s based on the legendary manga character created by Osamu Tezuka about a young robot with incredible powers. In the film, Kristen voices one of Astro’s friends.  Anyway, during the interview she talked about what her last two weeks have been like, Comic-Con, I ask if she thinks any of the kids watching will think Gossip Girl is in “Astro Boy”, and a lot more.  Watch it after the jump:

Opening on October 23^rd is Imagi Studios “Astro Boy”. The film is based on the legendary manga character created by Osamu Tezuka and in the film, Astro Boy is a young robot with incredible powers created by a scientist named Dr. Tenma (Nicolas Cage). Powered by positive “blue” energy, Astro Boy (Freddie Highmore) is endowed with super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly. Embarking on a journey in search of acceptance, Astro Boy encounters many other colorful characters along the way. Through his adventures, he learns the joys and emotions of being human, and gains the strength to embrace his destiny. Ultimately learning his friends and family are in danger, Astro Boy marshals his awesome super powers and returns to Metro City in a valiant effort to save everything he cares about and to understand what it means to be a hero. To help promote the film, we’ve been provided with 11 clips and you can watch them after the jump:

As a jaded, bitter film critic, I sometimes forget that my demands are different from those of the common moviegoer, especially when it comes to family films.  I’ll be the first to admit that most are insipid, thoughtless cash-grabs that kids will enjoy and that parents will reconsider their decision to have kids.  Pixar hasn’t helped matters by casting a shadow over every other 3D-animated movie.

I mention all this because you shouldn’t dismiss “Astro Boy” outright.  Yes, we’ve seen the government trying to capture the super-powered robot before but most kids haven’t.  While you should definitely sit them down and make them watch “The Iron Giant”, this trailer makes “Astro Boy” look fun and maybe parents will think it’s cute.  Also, it has a robot with machine guns in his ass and I think that’s something the whole family can enjoy.

MSN currently has the trailer and while it’s currently not embeddable, you can click here to check it out.  “Astro Boy” hits theaters on October 23rd.

If you’re a fan of “Astro Boy” and have been waiting for this year’s Comic-Con to finally watch a few complete scenes from the animated movie, you’ll want to be in room 6BCF at 10:15 Thursday morning. That’s because Summit Entertainment is going to premiere some footage and have stars Freddie Highmore, Kristen Bell, director David Bowers and producer Maryann Garger answer questions and talk about making the movie. I actually went to Imagi Studios headquarters in Los Angeles a few weeks ago and saw some of the film. My thoughts are after the jump:

Last year was my first time visiting Comic-Con. This year I am ready. I am pumped. I am bringing a large bodyguard who will push tiny nerds out of my way so I can grab more swag.

The official Comic-Con website has just posted the schedule for Thursday and for Wednesday’s “Preview Night”, which you can only attending if you’ve purchased a four-day pass. Friday and Saturday tend to be the Con’s biggest days with the largest events but Thursday and Sunday are no slouches. I’ve included the full schedule for Thursday, July 23rd after the jump and highlighted what I think may be worth your time (although my interests skew more towards movies and television as opposed to comics, action figures, and games).  Keep checking back as the schedules for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday will most likely be announced over the next few days.

Oh, and if you need an explanation for the hard-hat in the image above, click here.

Starting today at the Los Angeles Convention Center is Anime Expo 2009. Billed as the nation’s largest anime and manga convention, I went to see if their claim was true. And I have to say, it was pretty impressive. In a little while I’ll be posting tons of pictures of people in costumes and a more detailed write-up of what I thought. But for now, let’s talk “Gatchaman”.

At the convention today, Imagi Studios had a booth where they were showing clips from their upcoming “Astro Boy” movie and they also had some early signage for their next feature “Gatchaman”. After the jump, you can see the images as well as a “Gatchaman” watch which they were giving away to people at certain times of the day.

Last night I covered the 2009 Saturn Awards and managed to land tons of interviews on the red carpet. The one you’re about to watch is with Kristen Bell. During my limited time we talked about all her upcoming projects like “Astro Boy”, “Couples Retreat”, “When in Rome” and “You Again”. Watch the interview after the jump: