Our goal for The Collision‘s runtime is to always keep the show between 45 minutes and an hour.  However, we broke that rule this week so we could spend time talking about The Cabin in the Woods.  This is also our first show where we instituted spoiler protection, so everything Cabin was placed at the end of the show (specifically, it starts at the 41:55 mark).  But for those who don’t want to hear about Cabin just yet, we’ve still got plenty of great podcast for you.  We talk about the Catching Fire director wish list, teasers for trailers, Lockout, our weekly recommendations, and at one point my microphone drops out for a minute and we just keep going anyway!  You can also hear my awesome new speech impediment from having braces put back on my teeth.   The show is rough, tumble, and a whole lotta fun.  Once again, we encourage you to give us your thoughts on the podcast by either sounding off in the comments section or shooting a tweet @CollisionCast.  We’re still figuring out this podcast, and your feedback is invaluable in helping us shape the program.

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The Hunger Games cannot be stopped.  Director Gary Ross’s adaptation of the popular Suzanne Collins book took the top spot at the box office for the fourth weekend in a row with $21.5 million, bringing its domestic total to $337 million with a worldwide haul over $479 million.  Though Lionsgate is presumably extremely happy with The Hunger Games’ performance, they’re currently on the lookout for a director replacement for the sequel Catching Fire after Ross declined to return due to the tight schedule.  They have to start filming the follow-up this August in order for star Jennifer Lawrence to be wrapped in time to move on to the X-Men: First Class sequel in January, and to make Catching Fire’s November 2013 release date.  Hit the jump for details and analysis of the full top 10.

Despite three new wide releases this weekend, The Hunger Games is back at the top of the box office for the fourth (and not necessarily final) Friday in a row, adding another $6.5 million to its terrific $322 million domestic total.  The Three Stooges came in second with a $5.6 million opening day, which may be just enough to relaunch the franchise if the movie has legs.  The Cabin in the Woods trailed in third, premiering to $5.5 million.  That’s not a great total for a movie we love so much, but it could be much worse.  Look no further than Lockout, which landed outside the top five to a paltry $2.2 million, beat by last week’s offerings American Reunion and Titanic 3D.  Look for details and analysis on the full weekend tomorrow.

Lockout is a fun, pulpy sci-fi vehicle, and Guy Pearce is its engine.  James Mather and Stephen St. Leger‘s flick doesn’t have much of a budget, but they turn their limitations into an advantage by keeping the story lean, fast-paced, and with their charismatic lead actor almost always front and center.  The weaknesses of the plot become more apparent when Pearce isn’t on screen, and the action is mostly forgettable, but none of that seems to matter when you have roguish, smart-ass lead performance that recalls heroes like Snake Plisskin and John McClane.  There’s enough supporting material to keep Lockout running, but Pearce is what makes the movie blast off.

From Uli Kunkel in The Big Lebowski to Slippery Peter in Seinfeld to Gaear Grimsrud in Fargo and Jeff in Dancer in the Dark, the versatile Peter Stormare has turned in many unforgettable performances while working with some of the world’s top directors. In his latest movie, the futuristic sci-fi action thriller Lockout, he plays Secret Service chief Scott Langral who offers a falsely convicted ex-government agent (Guy Pearce) a chance at freedom if he will undertake the dangerous mission of rescuing the daughter (Maggie Grace) of the U.S. President when things go horribly wrong during a humanitarian mission to an experimental maximum security prison in outer space.

We sat down with Stormare at a roundtable interview to talk about the unusual film co-written and produced by Luc Besson. He told us what it was about the script that drew him to the project, why he prefers the old school style European filmmaking that Besson exemplifies to the Hollywood paint-by-number action formula Michael Bay is best known for, and how he believes good storytelling is all about building characters, using the imagination and inviting an audience to fantasize. He also discussed what it was like working with master filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, how he would like to do a film with Terrence Malick, and why Close Encounters tops his list of all time favorite films.

Luc Besson’s new sci-fi thriller, Lockout, is a fun and exciting ride set in the not too distant future.  Maggie Grace plays first daughter Emilie Warnock who is leading a humanitarian mission to MS One, an experimental prison in space. When a violent intergalactic mutiny unexpectedly sets loose 500 of Earth’s most dangerous psychotic criminals, President Warnock sends in the falsely convicted Agent Snow (Guy Pearce) to rescue her in exchange for his freedom. Living up to his irreverent reputation, Snow pushes all of Emilie’s buttons, but Emilie proves she can give as good as she gets and together they make a formidable team.

At the press day for Lockout, we sat down with Grace at a roundtable interview to talk about what attracted her to the role of Emilie.  She told us why she loves her action films served up with humor and how she enjoyed taking on the physically demanding role that involved sophisticated action scenes and a combination of stunts, combats and wire-work.  She discussed her training with stunt coordinator Patrick Cauderlier, her fun relationship on set with Pearce and their collaboration on the film’s Casablanca-inspired final scene, and why running in spacesuits presented some unusual challenges.   Grace also talked about her upcoming projects: Twilight: Breaking Dawn 2, Taken 2 and Decoding Annie Parker, plus why she’d like to do a romantic comedy.

Luc Besson‘s production company EuropaCorp has released the first five minutes of their latest slick action movie, Lockout.  The clip highlights two of the three things I want from the movie.  It’s funny and full of great action, often at the same time.  However, for a movie set at a maximum security prison in outer space, this clip is sadly earthbound.  You can see more science fiction-y action in previously released clips here, or hit the jump to watch the first five minutes.  Guy Pearce, Maggie Grace, Vincent Regan, Joseph Gilgun, Lennie James, and Peter Stormare star, directed by James Mather and Stephen St. Leger.  Lockout opens on April 13.

Six new posters for our Friday round-up. Here they are at a glance:

• American Reunion – In this fourth installment in the American Pie franchise, Jason Biggs, Seann William Scott, Alyson Hannigan, Chris Klein and more meet up for their characters’ high school reunion.
• Cabin in the Woods – Written by Joss Whedon and written/directed by David Goddard, this movie, starring Chris Hemsworth, Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford, follows five friends camping at a remote cabin; bad things happen.
• Lockout – From Luc Besson, this sci-fi actioner follows Guy Pearce as he attempts to rescue Maggie Grace from an outer space, maximum security prison.
• Safe – Jason Statham must rescue a young Chinese girl from Mafia thugs, coax a secret safe combination out of her and use it to outsmart the Russian mob, the Chinese Triad and corrupt NYC officials.
• Bel Ami – Robert Pattinson stars in this 1890s period piece in which he uses his powers of seduction to rise from rags to riches; also stars Uma Thurman, Kristin Scott Thomas, Christina Ricci and Colm Meaney.
• What to Expect When You’re Expecting – A look at five connected couples expecting a child and the twists of fate that life delivers each of them.  Elizabeth Banks, Anna Kendrick, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Jennifer Lopez, Rodrigo Santoro and more star.

Hit the jump to view the posters and synopses.

For those of you living in or around Los Angeles, we wanted to bring your attention to an advanced screening of the sci-fi thriller Lockout.  The movie stars Guy Pearce as a wrongly convicted man who will win his freedom if he rescues the president’s daughter (Maggie Grace) from an outer-space prison that’s been taken over by violent inmates.  Though the U.S. trailers are incredibly heavy on the action aspect of the film, I’ve actually heard that the movie is a lot of fun.  We saw a bit of Pearce’s wise-cracking charisma on display in some of the international trailers, and I’ve heard that he’s certainly a highlight of the pic.

Hit the jump for the details on the free screening and Q&A.

At this weekend’s WonderCon, I was able to sit down with Maggie Grace (Lost) for an extended interview.  The reason she was attending the con was to promote Luc Besson‘s high-octane outer space thriller Lockout that also stars Guy Pearce.   In the film, Pearce plays Snow, a man wrongly accused of conspiracy to commit espionage. His one chance at a pardon comes when he is tasked with rescuing the president’s daughter from a maximum security outer space prison facility when the inmates take control.  Lockout is the feature directorial debut of James Mather and Stephen St. Leger and it opens April 13th.  For more on the film, here’s a five minute clip and our recap of the WonderCon panel.

During my interview with Grace, we talked about how she got cast, how Lockout is more of a throwback sci-fi movie, what it’s like to work for Luc Besson and with Guy Pearce, if it was more fun playing Liam Neeson‘s daughter in Taken or the President’s daughter in Lockout, and more.  In addition, Grace talks about Decoding Annie Parker (which comes out later this year) and how she’s currently filming something in Atlanta but can’t reveal what it is yet.  Hit the jump to watch.

Featuring producer Luc Besson (the writer behind Taken) and Maggie Grace (the daughter who was Taken), the high-octane outer space thriller Lockout made an appearance at WonderCon 2012 today. This time, the man with a particular set of skills is no longer Liam Neeson, but Guy Pearce (Memento), playing Snow, a man wrongly accused of conspiracy to commit espionage. His one chance at a pardon comes when he is tasked with rescuing the president’s daughter from a maximum security outer space prison facility when the inmates take control. Lockout also stars Peter Stormare (Constantine) and is the feature directorial debut of James Mather and Stephen St. Leger. The film opens April 13th. Hit the jump to check out our WonderCon panel recap.

Five minutes from the upcoming sci-fi actioner film Lockout have gone online. The footage is the same clip that was shown earlier today at WonderCon, and highlights a scene involving Guy Pearce‘s character breaking into a space prison. Pearce plays a wrongly-accused spy who must rescue the President’s daughter (Maggie Grace) from the orbiting prison. Produced by Luc Besson, the film looks like a sufficiently fun thriller buoyed by Pearce’s wise-cracking lead character. Though the domestic trailers are all action, the international trailers highlight the charisma of Pearce and the fun rapport he has with Grace’s character. This clip shows more of Pearce’s appealing work, which leads me to believe that Lockout is much more than space explosions.

Hit the jump to watch five minutes from the film. Lockout opens on April 20th.

We’re happy to bring you three exclusive new images from the upcoming sci-fi thriller Lockout today. The film stars Guy Pearce as a wrongly-accused spy who must rescue the President’s daughter (Maggie Grace) from an orbiting prison. The film is almost like Taken in space, and in fact boasts the same producer as the Liam Neeson actioner, Luc Besson. The trailers released thus far have shown that we’re in for quite a bit of action, as well as a very witty, wise-crackin’ character from Pearce. I’m interested to see how the whole thing plays out, and these new images do a good job of teasing what’s ahead.

Hit the jump to check out the images. The film also stars Peter Stormare. Lockout opens on April 20th.

WonderCon 2012 has announced its programming schedule and attendees are in for some good stuff.  In addition to the wide variety of panels devoted to comic artists and writers, beloved genre figures, and career tips, there are some exciting movie and TV presentations lined up.  On the film side, there will be presentations for Resident Evil: Retribution (along with other Screen Gems films) Sound of My Voice (very cool that a Sundance indie flick is making an appearance), Battleship, Snow White and the Huntsman, Lockout, plus surprise presentations for upcoming films from 20th Century Fox (if there’s a sneak peek of Prometheus, the price of your WonderCon pass was worth it).

On the TV side, there will be presentations for Community, Fringe, Alcatraz, Person of Interest, The Secret Circle, Once Upon a Time, and more.  WonderCon, you had me at “Community”.  Hit the jump for the dates and times of the convention’s major highlights.  WonderCon 2012 will be at the Anaheim Convention Center and runs from March 16 – 18th.

We’ve got a few new posters to share with you today. First up is the debut one-sheet for the sci-fi action pic Lockout. The first couple of international trailers for this film had me surprisingly excited, as they showcased a wise-cracking Guy Pearce and a strangely goofy execution. Then the domestic marketing kicked in. This poster echoes the US trailers that scream “This is a big action movie with explosions that’s like Taken but not!” I’m still hoping that the actual tone skews more on the strange side, and the US marketing materials are simply the studio trying to sell the movie to teenage boys eager for more eye violations courtesy of Michael Bay.

Additionally, we’ve got a new international poster for the very light and fluffy Snow White pic Mirror Mirror, as well as a first poster for Kevin Macdonald’s (The Last King of Scotland) documentary Marley. Mirror Mirror continues to look like a farce, and this poster plays up the cutesy aspect of the pic, but Macdonald’s Marley poster is spot on. Hit the jump to check out the posters. Both Lockout and Marley open April 20th, while Mirror Mirror opens March 16th.