Movie Power Rankings is typically dominated by superheroes, space rangers and supernatural creatures, but this week the top spot goes to the Oprah-powered historical drama “Lee Daniels’ The Butler.” Despite schedule changes, a last-minute title revision and some right wing backlash, the film kicked all of its competition — including “Kick-Ass 2″and “Jobs” — to the curb in its $25 million opening weekend at the U.S. box office, and there’s already some early Oscar buzz for Winfrey and star Forest Whitaker.
As for the rest of this week’s list…
August 21, 2013
1. “The Butler” (Last week: Not ranked)
“The Butler 2,” anyone?
2. “Ant-Man” (Last week: Not ranked)
Will Edgar Wright cast his “The World’s End” buddy Simon Pegg as the tiny/giant Marvel superhero? Or is Pegg just daydreaming?
3. “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” (Last week: Not ranked)
Some new images feature Biilbo (Martin Freeman) and his elven pals, newbie Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) and your old pal Legolas (Orlando Bloom).
4. “Star Wars” (Last week: No. 5)
The latest rumor posits that the film will hit theaters in December of 2015. Not May, but December. Will the force still be with the series if it opens in the winter? Also, Ewan McGregor is rumored to be returning as Obi-Wan Kenobi, presumably in ghost form.
5. “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” (Last week: Not ranked)
Is the villainous Sinister 6 coming sooner than we expected? Check out these new photos for a possible answer.
6. “The Stranger”
J.J. Abrams loves his secrets. But what’s the scoop on his latest mystery project? We’re guessing it’s not an adaptation Albert Camus’s book of the same title.
7. New York Film Festival (Last week: Not ranked)
The lineup for the prestigious event has been unveiled and features such anticipated titles as “Inside Llewyn Davis,” “The Invisible Woman” and “The Wind Rises.”
8. “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (Last week: Not ranked)
The latest big screen adventure featuring the cowabunga crew has been pushed back two months in order to let “Transformers 4” dominate the summer 2014 box office for a while longer.
9. “The Twilight Zone” (Last week: Not ranked)
“Oblivion” director Joseph Kosinski is about to enter The Remake Zone.
10. “Thor: The Dark World” (Last week: No. 8)
International fans will get to see the latest Marvel sequel one week earlier than U.S. audiences. There’s no word on when the film will open in Asgard.
Check out the previous edition here. What do you think of this week’s rankings? Share your thoughts below. Or tweet your thoughts with the hashtag #moviepowerrankings and tell us who you want to see in next week’s edition.