Paramount Pictures had the best movies of 2011. That is, if big box office take equals "best." With a huge slate of financially successful films released throughout last year, including Michael Bay's mega-hit Transformers film, the relaunch of the Mission: Impossible franchise, and its first original animated film Rango, the studio claimed in a press release today, that it bucked the year's losing trend by raking in a record $5.17 billion worldwide in 2011. That sum represents the highest total combined take of any studio for the year. Several other film's that flew under the Paramount banner last year and contributed to the haul were J.J. Abrams' touching Super 8 and the third film in the Paranormal Activity franchise which brought in more than $100 million at the domestic box office.
But the juiciest nugget mined from the announcement was the news that a new chapter in the Paranormal Activity franchise is scheduled for release sometime in 2012. The PA scare train lost some of its luster when 3 hit theaters revealing a lot of mileage in its nocturnal hauntings, so excuse us for not holding out a lot of hope that they can hit pay dirt a fourth time. A narrative at the end of that film hinted at a 1930s beginning. Good luck with that!
A director has not been attached to the project but expect a different auteur to step in as that has been the case in each of the previous films. it is being rumored that Oren Peli, Steven Schneider, and Jason Blum will return to produce. No date yet, but definitely in 2012. [Update: Paranormal Activity 4 has been slated for an October 29, 2012 release.]
