In response to both a preview screening and an in-person filmmakers' presentation at last month's Comic-Con International fan convention in San Diego, Rogue Pictures has pushed up the release date for comedy flick BALLS OF FURY. Previously set for Friday, Aug. 31, the movie will now open in the U.s. two days earlier, on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2007.
The move to earlier in the week makes BALLS OF FURY the latest summer movie to maximize its commercial potential, a similar shift that other titles have recently made.
BALLS OF FURY writer/director Robert Ben Garant and writer/costar Thomas Lennon (NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM and RENO 911!) touted the movie during Comic-Con, with Rogue's marketing, publicity and promotions teams blanketing the convention with tie-ins ranging from men's briefs to state-of-the-art Ping-Pong paddles.
"When we saw how well the movie played at Comic-Con -- and heard so much continuing positive buzz in the days afterwards -- we realized that there's even more potential audience for our PG-13-rated movie if we open a couple of days earlier," commented Jack Foley, president of theatrical distribution for Rogue and sibling company Focus Features. "As the only nationwide release scheduled for midweek, we will have the equivalent of two days of sneak previews and word-of-mouth as we head into the lucrative Labor Day holiday weekend play period."
BALLS OF FURY serves up the unsanctioned, underground and unhinged world of extreme Ping-Pong. Down-and-out former professional Ping-Pong powerhouse Randy Daytona (Dan Fogler) is sucked into this maelstrom when FBI Agent Rodriguez (George Lopez) recruits him for a secret mission. Randy is determined to bounce back and recapture his former glory, and to smoke out his father's (Robert Patrick) killer -- one of the FBI's Most Wanted, arch-fiend Feng (Christopher Walken).
A Rogue Pictures, Intrepid Pictures, and Spyglass Ent. presentation of a Barber/Birnbaum production, Balls of Fury is produced by Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber, Jonathan Glickman and Thomas Lennon. Written by Thomas Lennon & Robert Ben Garant, the film is directed by Robert Ben Garant.
Rogue Pictures (www.roguepictures.com) is devoted to producing and distributing high-quality suspense, action, thriller, comedy, and urban entertainment with mainstream appeal and franchise potential.
