An aliens-among-us story by a first time director has topped the American box office, raking in US$37 million this past weekend!
Helmed by 29-year-old South African born director, Niell Blomkamp, District 9 has no big name stars – in fact, the lead actor (Sharlto Copley) had never acted in a movie before – but that didn’t prevent the film from outgrossing G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra by a whopping USD 14.5 million! District 9 is no slouch in the ratings either, scoring a solid 88% at Rotten Tomatoes.
We South Africans have to wait a bit longer to watch Wikus Van De Merwe and “prawn” friend Christopher Johnson taking the fight to the seedy MNU corporation. District 9 releases officially in local theatres on August 28th, but word is that Joburg will see a premiere screening this Wednesday, August 19th, at the Zone in Rosebank – full details are available at SterKinekor. Canal Walk in Cape Town might be hosting a premiere too, but no details have surfaced as yet. We’ll keep you posted though.
BONUS: Vanity Fair had a chat with Sharlto Copley about working on District 9. Read the Q&A HERE.