Monday, July 03, 2006

On July 7, Johnny Depp will reprise his Academy Award(R) nominated role as
Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. The
highly anticipated follow-up to Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the
Black Pearl is expected to draw large crowds across the U.S. during its
opening weekend. Sportsbook.com, the world's largest online sportsbook and
casino, has posted odds on the film's opening weekend U.S. gross suggesting
the sequel will surpass the success of the first Pirates. The first Pirates
movie grossed more than $305 million in the U.S. and today, industry experts
are predicting even higher box office returns for the sequel. Casting Johnny
Depp in the lead role certainly helps. Since the start of his film career in
the early 1980s, Depp's movies have grossed over $2.5 billion worldwide. The
return of heartthrobs Orlando Bloom and Kiera Knightley alongside Depp adds
to the star power of Pirates 2. The film's director is Gore Verbinski, whose
directing credits include the first Pirates of the Caribbean and The Ring.

According to the latest betting trends from Sportsbook.com, bettors are
expecting Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest to eclipse Superman
Returns, the season's first major release, at the box office. More than 97%
of bets have been wagered on Pirates 2 to gross more than $90 million during
its opening weekend, compared to just over 23% of bets wagered on Superman
Returns, opening today, to earn more than $89.5 million during its opening
weekend.

Sportsbook.com continues to offer bettors the exciting new option of
wagering on the opening weekend gross of major film releases throughout the
year along with exclusive industry background information to help bettors
make their choice. "Box office battles are a blast to watch." said Alex
Czajkowski, Marketing Director, Sportsbook.com. "Everybody bets and movie
buffs love to wager on the fortunes of Hollywood's self-proclaimed
blockbusters. It will be fun to see whether Pirates 2 can beat the Man of
Steel."