It’s very rare for a film to hit the number one spot at the box office several weeks after its release, but that is exactly what the Coen Brothers’ True Grit accomplished this weekend. The film finally shook the monkey (Little Fockers) off its back for a clear shot at the number one slot.

Grit made about $15 M over the weekend, and because it was a god-awful weekend at the box office, that was good enough for a first place finish.  Business was down almost 30% from last weekend. Entertainment Weekly reports that it could be the worst January weekend since 2000!

The good news is that the Coen Brothers just surpassed the $100M milestone for the very first time.  This is the first film they have made that has made it to into the club, so to speak.  Good for them. True Grit will surely continue to succeed in theaters, particularly if the film receives any Oscar nominations.

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Just two weeks  before filming was to begin,  Nicholas Cage has pulled out of Joel Schumacher’s Trespass. According to reports, Cage is on vacation and will stay in the Bahamas.

Rather than waiting for the star, the studio plans to keep the film on schedule and will move forward without Cage. The studio is currently scrambling for a replacement. The rumored forerunner for the role is Liev Schreiber.

In the film, Cage was set to play opposite Nicole Kidman as a husband who is kidnapped with his wife by a group of thugs looking for ransom. The problems began when Cage decided that he rather play one of the kidnappers instead of the lead male role.

One thing is for sure, Cage isn’t known for pulling out of projects or turning down roles. Even with a recent streak of wins such as Knowing and Kick-Ass, Cage has taken on some horrible roles in films like The Wicker Man, Next, Ghost Rider, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Astro Boy, Bangkok Dangerous and the upcoming Season of the Witch.

How bad could a role be that the man who was the “star” of The Wicker Man remake decided to drop out? Could it be that Schumacher is past his prime and is making a film that even Cage knows is horrible? Or is it another bad move by Cage who may end up regretting it? Only time will tell.

Though he’s coming off of the train wreck which was Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, Nicolas Cage still needs needs money, badly. That means that 2010 will probably become the “Year of Cage,” with at least 6 of his films getting theatrical release next year. One of those films is Season of the Witch, which already looks like a front runner for the 2010 Razzie Awards.

The film’s plot is pretty straightforward: Nicolas Cage is a knight who is set to transport an alleged witch to a monastery, where a monk declares her powers could be the source of the Black Plague. Basically replace Bruce Willis and Mos Def from 16 Blocks with Nicolas Cage, a witch, and black magic, all taking place in Medieval Times.

Check out the brand new trailer after the jump, which admittedly has some cool moments, even if the use of Nicolas Cage and a recycled plot may be present. The film, directed by Whiteout’s Domenick Sena, hits theaters nation-wide on March 19th, 2010.

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Halloween is officially 8 days away (7 if you celebrate on the 30th), so it would make sense for a studio like Lionsgate to put out lots of genre films to coincide with the spookiest of holidays, right? Wrong, because according to them, March is the new Halloween. Whatever that means.

There is a brand new teaser out for Season of the Witch, starring Ron Perlman, Stephen Campbell Moore (The Bank Job), Ulrich Thomsen (Hitman), and yes, Nic Cage. Also, don’t be surprised that a film about witches isn’t coming out around Halloween, because director Dominic Sena’s last film, Whiteout, sat on the shelf for nearly a year before a soft release.

Though October is considered a dead financial month for films, it was nice that the trailer tried to cover it up by proclaiming that “Halloween is for Amateurs.” March isn’t a much better time, but it is where bad horror films go to die, so don’t expect much on March 19th when Season of the Witch opens nationwide.

Check out the first teaser trailer after the jump!

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