Box Office Preview: 'Megamind's' the unstoppable 1

LOS ANGELES – It looks like "Megamind" will be going for two in a row this weekend as the all-star animated feature from Dreamworks and Paramount fends off stalwart Robert Downey Jr. and newcomers Denzel Washington and Harrison Ford to remain on top at the nation's theaters.

Using the box office trajectory of the similarly performing "How to Train Your Dragon" as a guide, a second weekend drop in the mid-30 percent range would give "Megamind" a chart-topping gross of around $30 million and an $80 million-plus total by the end of the weekend.

Todd Phillips' "Due Date," starring Downey and Zach Galifianakis, should generate revenues in the low $20 millions with a second weekend drop of around 30 percent and a total gross through Sunday of close to $75 million. The Warner Bros. film opened in second place last weekend with a solid $32.7 million but has been dominating the midweek box office derby vs. the more family-oriented and therefore weekend-friendly "Megamind."

Racing close behind, we have Denzel Washington and director Tony Scott joining forces yet again for 20th Century Fox's runaway train drama "Unstoppable." The pair has collaborated on four other films, including the train-themed "The Taking of Pelham 123." Those films had an average opening weekend of $21.3 million and given the co-star power of Chris Pine, "Unstoppable" is looking to debut around the $20 million mark.

Harrison Ford brings his "Working Girl" comedy chops back to the big screen with co-stars Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams in "Morning Glory" from Paramount. Roger Michell, who directed 1999's "Notting Hill," hopes to attract women, the date crowd and older audiences to this story set around a morning TV news show. With the younger demographic relating to McAdams and older audiences identifying with Ford and Keaton, "Morning Glory," which opened Wednesday, should wind up with close to $15 million by the end of the weekend.

The No. 5 spot will likely go to Universal's sci-fi newcomer "Skyline," which offers fans of the genre some extra-terrestrial fun and therefore should wind up in the low teens. However, battling the aliens for fifth place will be Lionsgate's "For Colored Girls" with an expected gross of over $10 million. Perry's early 2010 release, "Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married," dropped 62 percent in its second weekend, but given the older audience demographic of this latest film and its lower opening weekend number, a smaller drop in the 50 percent range is to be expected.