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Lionsgate and Millennium Films' The Expendables 3 opened to a muted $875,000 Thursday night from more than 2,200 locations. While on par with the $870,000 earned by The Expendables and ahead of the $685,000 grossed by the sequel, the threequel rolled out at 7 p.m., compared to midnight for the first two films. To boot, The Weinstein Co. and Walden Media's new YA film adaptation The Giver wasn't far behind, pulling in $750,000. Expendables 3 , featuring a multigenerational lineup of action stars, is expected to take in $20 million to $25 million for the weekend, a series low. In addition to potential franchise fatigue, a pristine copy of the film leaked on the Internet is likely to hurt grosses, much like what happened when X-Men Origins: Wolverine was pirated before its release in 2009. The weekend's other new offerings are the R-rated comedy Let's Be Cops , which got a jump on the competition by opening Wednesday, and The Giver. A trio of specialty films

Summer 2014 gets one last chance to make an impression. Summer 2014 made a big run in July, featuring releases like Dawn of the Planet of the Apes to The Purge: Anarchy , and Lucy. But there was a feeling that somehow Hollywood didn't exactly bring its A game. With films like The Dark Knight , Inception , the original Transformers and Harry Potter released during the same months during the previous 8 years, 2014's schedule felt very underwhelming. As Summer 2014 wraps up, we look to August to deliver a knockout punch, or at least offer better chances for box office glory than July. The schedule features mutated reptiles, washed up action actors, and a little film from Marvel. Guardians of the Galaxy (August 1st) Plot: In the far reaches of space, an American pilot named Peter Quill finds himself the object of a manhunt after stealing an orb coveted by the villainous Ronan. Director: James Gunn Starring: Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Coop