Christmas day arrives with 5 presents for moviegoers under the tree. This is one crowded holiday weekend with enough choices to satisfy everyone. All predictions for this weekend are for the 4 day holiday frame starting on Christmas day. 

First up, is Disney’s Bedtime Stories starring Adam Sandler. The film has been marketed really well and is sure to be a big hit. Sandler has made a brilliant career move making a family film and it will pay off. Sandler is in esteemed company in branching out into family comedies, joining Ben Stiller (Night at the Museum), Eddie Murphy and Mike Meyers (the Shrek movies) and Jim Carrey (The Grinch, Horton Hears a Who), all of which have had major success in the genre. Look for Bedtime Stories to rake in $45M over the 4 day frame and to become Adam Sandler’s 10^th movie to gross over $100M. 

Next is The Curious Case of Benjamin Button starring Brad Pitt as a man who ages backwards. This is the third time Pitt has worked with director David Fincher, the man responsible for Pitt’s 2 best movies, Seven and Fight Club, so my expectations for this film are sky high. I think Button will be the Forrest Gump of this decade and is sure to receive plenty of love during awards season. It’s already received 5 nominations from the Golden Globes including Best Picture. With great reviews and plenty of award nominations, Benjamin Button should have a good first weekend and continue with a sturdy hold on the box office in the coming weeks. The only thing weakening its box office chances this weekend is the near 3 hour running time, but I don’t think it will be that big of a factor. Look for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button to gross $40M over the weekend.

Based on the hit novel, family drama, Marley & Me, starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston, is the third major release of the weekend. This is Aniston’s first starring role since 2006’s The Break Up and it looks like she has another hit on her hands. With a built in audience from the best-selling novel and a lovable dog as the center of this movie, Marley & Me should enjoy a good opening weekend. Some families will opt to see Bedtime Stories and The Tale of Despereaux instead though, due to the tragic ending of Marley. Look for Marley & Me to collect around $36M this holiday weekend.

Tom Cruise and director Bryan Singer team up for Valkyrie, the true story of German officers planning to assassinate Hitler. The reviews have been pretty good and this film should help boost Tom Cruise’s big comeback. Due to the serious subject matter, I don’t expect Valkyrie to have a huge opening, but positive word of mouth should help it in the coming weeks at the box office. Valkyrie should walk away with $28M this weekend.

The last new release marks Frank Miller’s solo directorial debut with his adaption of Will Eisner’s The Spirit. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… I am not a fan of Frank Miller and pretty much despise the other films he’s been involved in. True, both Sin City and 300 were big box office hits, but The Spirit has little chance of continuing the trend. With bad reviews and a character that hasn’t been relevant in decades, look for The Spirit to bomb, collecting a paltry $10M (if it’s lucky), over the holiday frame. To check out my other predictions for this holiday weekend, see the chart below.