Mike Fleming

EXCLUSIVE: Taking advantage of a sliver of daylight in the Oscar season release corridor, The Weinstein Company has moved from an October 19 to a November 30 release on Killing Them Softly, the Andrew Dominik-directed crime drama that stars Brad Pitt, Scoot McNairy, James Gandolfini, Richard Jenkins and Ray Liotta. Pitt plays an enforcer who investigates a heist in a mob-sponsored card game. It is a smart move because the film was going against October 19 openers Paranormal Activity 4 and Alex Cross, the Rob Cohen-directed reboot of the James Patterson series that stars Tyler Perry. Right now, the film goes against the Nicolas Cage/John Cusack thriller The Frozen Ground and not much else. It also puts Pitt closer to the Oscar mix.

Harvey Weinstein confirmed the move to me. “In this industry it is a very rare event to look at a weekend where your movie could open as the only wide release picture,” he said. “November 30th will allow us to bring Killing Them Softly to a wide audience without competition. Additionally, the critical response to the movie has been very favorable especially on the amazing performances and November 30th positions us better in the Awards season calendar.”