“Super 8″ had a big opening weekend, earning a total of $37 million dollars, reports CTV.

The action flick, directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Steven Spielberg, started with $1 million in sneak-peek screenings Thursday, then earning a total of $38 million domestically.

“The movie was never conceived to be a blockbuster, tent-pole film opening to $60 or $70 million,” said Don Harris, head of distribution for Paramount.

The film bumped the previous No. 1 movie, “X-Men: First Class,”  to second-place, earning $25 million over the weekend. The “X-Men” prequel raised a total to $98.9 million domestically. “The Hangover Part II” still came in strong with $18.5 million, making it the year’s top-grossing domestic release at $216.6 million.

Here’s a list of the top 5 weekend openings:

1. “Super 8,” $37 million ($6.7 million international).

2. “X-Men: First Class,” $25 million.

3. “The Hangover Part II,” $18.5 million ($38.3 million international).

4. “Kung Fu Panda 2,” $16.6 million ($56.5 million international).

5. “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” $10.8 million ($41.1 million international).

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Paramount and Twitter are teaming up on June 9th to host the first-ever ‘tweet movie sneak preview’ of the film ‘Super 8.’

Written and directed by J.J. Abrams, as well as produced by Steven Spielberg, the film will be no-doubtely cutting edge. And the advertising campaign is no different.

Paramount Pictures and Twitter will host a sneak preview for the film tomorrow, where the companies have designated the hashtag #Super8Secret for Twitter users to base a direct link to buy tickets to the advanced show.

“With SUPER 8, J.J. and Steven have created a really fun and engaging movie for all ages,” said Rob Moore, Vice Chairman of Paramount Pictures. “We are excited to finally get it out into the marketplace and using this sneak preview promotion with Twitter to kick start the film’s release, is an unprecedented way to get people into theaters and talking about the movie.”

The film follows a group of friends in a small town who witness a horrific train crash while making a ‘super 8′ movie,’ only to suspect that it was not an accident when strange disappearances and events begin to take place in the town.

The film opens nationwide on June 10th.

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Fox has cancelled five current shows and is adding three new ones, E Online reports.

In a ruthless move, Fox has also canceled ‘Lie to Me,’ ‘The Chicago Code,’ and ‘Traffic Light.’ The network has also canceled ‘Human Target’ after just two seasons, as well as the new Christian Slater comedy ‘Breaking In.’

It’s being called #FOXapolipse on Twitter.

Ruthless, indeed. But with that comes three new shows to expect for the fall.

First on the list of new shows is the ‘Bones’ spinoff ‘The Finder,’ starring Geoff Stults, which is based off an episode of ‘Bones’ that aired last month.

Also added to the Fox network is the drama ‘Alcatraz’ from J.J. Abrams, the mastermind behind ‘Lost’ and ‘Fringe.’

In the comedy department, Fox is adding ‘The New Girl,’ an ensemble show exploring the sexual politics among men and women. The show will star Zooey Deschanel and Damon Wayans Jr.

I personally won’t miss any of the cancelled shows. The new ones sound sort of promising. ‘The New Girl’ is probably the only one I’ll actually check out, because I love Zooey Deschanel. The show ‘Alcatraz’ will probably worth checking out too, I mean, J.J. Abrams, hello. What do you think of the switch-ups?

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J.J. Abrams will literally shake things up on the big screen with a new disaster movie.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the “Lost” mastermind has teamed up with original “Omen” screenwriter David Seltzer to work on an earthquake movie for Universal Pictures.

Abrams is producing the project with his Bad Robot partners Bryan Burk and Sherryl Clark. As of now, Abrams is attached only to produce the movie, for which plot details are being kept tightly under wraps.

However, Universal did reveal that it will be a character-driven drama in much the same vein as Abrams’ previous project “Cloverfield,” a monster movie in which the action was seen from the perspective of a personal relationship.

As well, the movie will not be a remake of the 1974 Universal movie “Earthquake,” which starred such big names as Charlton Heston and Ava Gardner.

Abrams is currently finishing up his highly anticipated “Star Trek” reboot, which is due out May 2009.

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Canadian Joshua Jackson has been cast as the lead in “Lost” creator J.J. Abrams’ highly anticipated new series “The Fringe.”

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Vancouver-born Jackson, best known as Pacey from “Dawson’s Creek,” will play a high-school dropout with an IQ of 190 in the sci-fi series.

His character, Peter Bishop, teams up with his estranged, institutionalized scientist father (Australian actor John Noble) and an FBI agent (Australian actress Anna Torv) to investigate the spread of paranormal events.

The Warner Bros. TV-produced series is currently shooting in Toronto, with the two-hour pilot reportedly costing $10 million U.S.

Jackson, 29, appeared in the “Mighty Ducks” movies as a teen, and later starred in “Dawson’s Creek” from 1998 and 2003.

Other movies he has appeared in include “Cruel Intentions,” “Bobby” and last year’s “Battle in Seattle.”

He will next hit the big screen in the horror film “Shutter,” opening in March.

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J.J Abrams has another hit on his hands.

Cloverfield, produced by Abrams, was a monster success (pun intended) at the weekend box-office pulling in $46 million.

The modern day monster flick about a creature attacking Manhattan hoped to follow in the giant footsteps of genre predecessors like King Kong and Godzilla. And it did just that.

The opening marks a January record, E Online reports.

The indie-like movie cost $30 million and built a whole bunch of hype before its release, including theatres promising to play a teaser for Abrams’ next venture, the new Star Trek movie.

Coming in second with a respectable $27.3 million was Katherine Heigl’s headlining debut, 21 Dresses.

The Bucket List, Juno, and First Sunday rounded out the top 5.

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J.J. Abrams must be one of the busiest people in Hollywood – and now he’s got another project on his plate, this time in Toronto.

The man behind hit shows like “Alias” and “Lost” is co-executive producing “The Fringe,” a TV pilot being shot in the city later this month for the Fox Network.

The series would follow a research scientist, his estranged son and an FBI agent who are forced to deal with the spread of paranormal events.

The only cast member known so far is British actress Charlotte Rampling (“Great Expectations,” “Swimming Pool”).

Shooting is expected to wrap up at the end of March.

“So much of the story is relatable people in extraordinary situations,” Abrams told Variety in October. “The show is definitely a nod to ‘Altered States’ and ‘Scanners’ and that whole Michael Crichton/Robin Cook world of medicine and science.

“It does the stuff my favorite TV shows and movies do, which is to combine genres that shouldn’t fit together,” Abrams said. “It’s definitely meant to scare the hell out of you, but it’s also meant to make you laugh.

“It pushes all the buttons of things we loved from our childhood.”

Abrams currently has his hands full directing the new Star Trek movie, which chronicles the beginnings of the Enterprise crew.

He also produced “Cloverfield,” which is set to hit theatres this Friday in the U.S.

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