The following was posted our Message Board, thank you Mary Ann for sharing this article and your insights with the Campaign.

NY Post: Banderas Up Against the Ropes

That's the title of the NY Post's article about this weekend's box office returns, where "Play It to the Bone" came in No. 9. I'm reprinting some of the article here, not to knock Banderas but to point out that he is not the draw that ALW and/or WB may think he is.

"Antonio, Antonio, wherefore art thou, Antonio? Heartthrob no more, Antonio Banderas has endured a brutal past 12 months, enough to deflate even the most modest Latin lover. First there was 'The 13th Warrior,'(Banderas' big summer action flick...thirteen is not his lucky number) then 'Crazy in Alabama,' (his directorial review...met with respectful reviews and no audience interest) and now 'Play It to the Bone.' Not since Lucy kicked Desi out of the house has there been such a showbiz disappointment. Like the sexually confused character he plays in Ron Shelton's boxing comedy opposite Woody Harrelson, Banderas is up against the ropes. 'Play It to the Bone' debuted in ninth place this weekend, knocked out by bad reviews and worse word of mouth following a brief Christmas release at one Hollywood theater."

My thoughts: If AB is not a box office draw in a small- or medium-budget film because of bad reviews and bad word of mouth, however in the world can it be hoped that he can carry a huge-budget musical? The likelihood that he will get good reviews in POTO is slim considering the reaction to his performance at the ALW birthday party. The word of mouth among the worldwide audience of POTO fans will be poisonous. This casting will doom the Phantom movie. I pray that ALW will come to his senses. If not, let's hope someone in the business end of RUG will do some arithmetic and give him a sense of the bottom line. With this rumored casting, that bottom line will be one color only: red.