Bale, Stiller face off at Memorial Day box office (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) –

It's Ben Stiller against the cyborgs at the multiplex this weekend.

"Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian," the sequel from 20th Century Fox starring the comic actor, has at least a chance of edging out the first new "Terminator" movie in almost six years for the No. 1 box-office ranking during the long Memorial Day weekend. That's largely because even though Warner Bros. will open "Terminator Salvation" Thursday with thousands of 12:01 a.m. performances, weekend rankings will be based only on what the Christian Bale-starring movie grosses between Friday and Monday.

Bale plays the franchise's recurring John Connor character, a cyborg-battling defender of mankind portrayed by Nick Stahl in 2003's "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines." Bale's casting has drawn keen attention because it's his first big-screen appearance since last summer's Batman blockbuster, "The Dark Knight."

Relative newcomer Sam Worthington -- who also will be seen in James Cameron's upcoming sci-fi action feature "Avatar" -- plays a cyborg, or a robot constructed from organic and synthetic parts, in a role of the sort that Arnold Schwarzenegger built a career on.

As the first "Terminator" film to secure a PG-13 rating, "Salvation" is expected to draw younger moviegoers than most hard-core action films do, but not as young as "Smithsonian," which also should attract more females. Directed by the filmmaker known as McG ("Charlie's Angels"), "Salvation" has drawn huge interest from males 17 and older in prerelease surveys.

Of the past few years' Memorial Day weekend releases, Warners executives expect their movie's audience profile to most closely mimic that of 2005's "The Longest Yard," a remake of the classic football comedy that registered $58.6 million over the four-day holiday frame. If "Salvation" were to match that figure, an extra $10 million or so from its Thursday performances would take the gross close to $70 million through Memorial Day.

HEFTY PRICE TAG

Produced for upward of $180 million, "Salvation" will open in 3,530 domestic theaters this weekend. Sony will distribute the film in most international territories beginning June 5. This weekend, overseas action for "Salvation" involves only seven non-Sony territories in the Middle East and Korea. It adds a handful of Sony territories during the May 29 frame.

Meanwhile, the PG "Smithsonian" should play much like a family film but could split date-night business with "Salvation." In any event, the true measure of its success likely lies over the longer haul.

The original "Museum" opened in December 2006 with an undramatic $30.4 million but went on to ring up $251 million overall domestically. "Smithsonian" seems a cinch to register $50 million during the four-day frame, with its opening appeal among nonfamily patrons the key to whether it bows north of that figure.

"Monsters" opened during a three-day March frame with $59 million and grossed $191 million overall domestically.

Helmed by Shawn Levy ("The Pink Panther"), who also directed the "Museum" original, "Smithsonian" is set for 4,096 domestic playdates, including 160 high-grossing Imax venues. It also is getting a big push abroad as Fox simultaneously unspools the effects-laden pic in 93 foreign territories.

The Wayans brothers' comedy spoof "Dance Flick," from Paramount, also enters wide release this weekend.

Like most Wayans films, the PG-13-rated "Flick" is likely to draw most heavily among urban moviegoers but could cross over into broader demographics. The release should earn teen millions during the long weekend, but how high it climbs through Monday depends on how broadly the pic manages to play.

(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)

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