Stars: Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Where We Left Off: Two men, Charlie (Eddie Murphy) and Phil (Jeff Garlin), get laid off from their jobs and become stay-at-home dads, pulling their kids out of the expensive, exclusive Chapman Academy. They open their own daycare center throwing them into competition with Chapman and its tough-as-nails director, played by Anjelica Huston. After being offered their old jobs back, the two decide that money isn’t everything and keep open Daddy Day Care.
The Skinny: Oscar winner Cuba Gooding, Jr. steps in for Oscar nominee Eddie Murphy in the sequel to the hilarious 2003 comedy. After Daddy Day Care, Charlie (Gooding, Jr.) and Phil embark on another kid-harried adventure as they take over running a summer day camp in Daddy Day Camp. But troubles start when Charlie's father, Col. Buck Hinton (Richard Gant), starts to control it.
Total Gross: $104.2 million – $104.2 million (Daddy Day Care)
Black Quotient: High
Prediction: Trouble, pure and simple. After stalling in 2005, the film lost its star, Murphy, and the entire cast from the first film. Only the original writer is back in the one sequel that is “least likely to succeed.” Gooding takes over from Murphy, who has experience making bad movies for kids (Snow Dogs and Home on the Range). Without its creative team and likable cast, including the funny Murphy, from the first film, it will be hard for this film to make half of the original’s gross. Gooding’s fall from award winner to kid movie fodder is almost complete. Next up for the embattled actor is a role as Nicky Barnes in the Denzel Washington film, American Gangster. My prediction for Daddy Day Camp is an overly optimistic $60 million. (August 8)
This feature also appeared on BET.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment