Big-budget sequels dominate this year's roster of Hollywood films, and it's an easy ticket choice for fans who just want more screen time with their favourite film pirates, vampires and wizards.
Among the most anticipated is Johnny Depp's return as the foppish hero, Captain Jack Sparrow, in "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" (May 20). How can moviegoers lose, with Depp in black eyeliner and Penelope Cruz on board as Blackbeard's daughter?
This year marks the reunion of Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner in their fourth film in the series, "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (Nov. 18).
Robert Downey Jr. also returns to battle the evil Professor Moriarity in Guy Ritchie's "Sherlock Holmes 2" (Dec. 16).
But despite the many sequels headed our way in 2011, including "The Hangover Part II" (May 26), "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" (July 1) and "Paranormal Activity 3" (Oct. 21), sequel madness could hit record highs thanks to just one film: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2."
After a decade of Potter movies, the highest-grossing series of all time will end on July 15. By all early accounts, this climactic finale to the series penned by J.K. Rowling is going to be darker, more adult, more moody, and action-packed, as the kids enter the "real world."
"Deathly Hallows: Part 2" may leave Potter fans weeping in their hankies. But it could also leave Warner Bros. weeping joyfully over what could become the biggest box office haul in Hollywood history.
Getting animated
Depp has often been called a chameleon actor. Now the 47-year-old star plays an actual chameleon in "Rango," Gore Verbinski's new animated adventure (March 4).
This riotous tale about a lizard who becomes the sheriff of an Old West town has already earned early praise from critics. Some are even predicting that this reptilian joyride lands an Oscar nod in 2012 for Best Animated Picture.
If it does, "Rango" won't be alone on the nomination list.
The new 3D adventure "Cars 2" (June 24) should speed off with fans' applause this year, as will DreamWorks' "Kung Fu Panda 2" (May 27), Disney's "Winnie the Pooh" (July 15) and Sony's "The Smurfs" (Aug. 3).
The "Shrek" spin-off "Puss in Boots" (Nov. 4) should also earn big raves in 2011 from fans and potential Oscar voters.
This prequel stars Antonio Bandera, who voices the swashbuckling feline Puss in events that lead to his first meeting with Shrek.
The film also features Zack Galifianakis (Humpty Dumpty) and Salma Hayek as Puss's new love interest. If that combo doesn't say the cat's meow at the box office, what does?
Must-see action, comedy, drama
Imagine James Bond's Daniel Craig and Indiana Jones's Harrison Ford going head to head in the sci-fi western, "Cowboys & Aliens" (July 29). That's just the start to this slick period tale about an amnesiac loner (Craig) and a tough colonel (Ford) who battle mysterious strangers who come from the sky. Ticket sold!
Action fans will get to see conventional and IMAX versions of "Sucker Punch" (March 25), the latest from "300" director Zack Snyder. An all-female cast of hot chicks bust out of a mental institution with grenades. They rock schoolgirl uniforms and samurai swords. Just think of "Alice in Wonderland" with machine guns.
Look for big laughs courtesy of the outrageous Russell Brand in the remake of "Arthur" (April 8). Brand plays the boozehound playboy that made Dudley Moore famous in 1981.
Helen Mirren also adds a welcome twist as Arthur's valet Hobson, the role originally played by Sir John Gielgud. We're betting that this incarnation of "Arthur" nails it at the box office.
That achievement would please Mel Gibson, the star of the 2011 comedy-drama, "The Beaver."
Thanks to Gibson's own real-life drama of late, all eyes will be on the 55-year-old actor as he tries for a career comeback in this flick directed by Jodie Foster.
Early buzz has favoured this oddball story about a depressed CEO who dons a beaver hand puppet to communicate with his family.
And for one final nod to real-life drama, Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz are bound to attract the world's attention this fall when the curtain rises on "Dream House," Jim Sheridan's new horror flick.
The actors reportedly began an affair while filming this thriller about a couple who move into their perfect home, only to find it inhabited by souls who were murdered on the premises.
"Dream House" could also spark one of 2011's best water cooler questions: will they still be together for the September premiere?
