A Million Ways To Die In The West: Seth McFarlane's debut feature Ted was the breakout comedy of 2012, becoming Universal's biggest hit of the year and the highest-grossing original R-rated comedy of all time with almost $550m in the coffers. For his follow-up, McFarlane plays the main role in this western comedy as a sheep farmer turned hero. The genre is a tough sell to casual audiences, so expect marketing to aggressively play up the 'creator of Family Guy and Ted' connection. If it is as well-reviewed as Ted, A Million Ways to Die in the West could hold well throughout the summer, although it will take a hit when 22 Jump Street is released two weeks later and will probably fall well short of Ted's final tally.Guardians Of The Galaxy: Marvel Studios takes their biggest gamble yet with James Gunn's adaptation of the relatively obscure comic book property. A superhero team movie that features a sprawling ensemble cast (including a sentient tree and a gun-toting raccoon) and is set in space seems like a tough sell but if anybody can make it work, it's Marvel. Having two A-list stars in Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel will help, although they are providing voice-work only. Anything over $350m will be a success given the nature of the project, but if the movie is as good as early reactions to footage has indicated word-of-mouth could see it wind up much higher, especially when it faces no real box-office competition in August.Night At The Museum 3: Five and a half years after Battle of the Smithsonian, the Night at the Museum franchise returns to screens with the threequel that I've never heard anyone say they needed in their life. The original was a huge hit when it was released in December 2006, grossing almost $575m despite mixed reviews. The 2009 sequel was released in May to even less enthusiastic response and ultimately fell short of its predecessor by over $160m. Despite critical apathy and a lengthy gap between movies, Night at the Museum 3 returns to a December release date and with the probable addition of 3D and The Hobbit the only other viable option for family audiences, the tired franchise could rebound with a hefty box office total. Rio 2: The animated sequel will look to emulate the original, which opened in March 2011 and with little direct competition from family audiences ultimately grossed almost $485m worldwide. The sequel will look to repeat the trick, and with no other major animated releases until June, Rio 2 looks poised to do solid business again. Sequels to well-liked animated movies tend to gross more than their predecessors, and although Rio isn't as strong a brand as Ice Age (which saw its sequel gross over $250m more than the original), it could well end up in the top ten.
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