SAN DIEGO (AP) — The “Twilight” blood-suckers aren’t the only big-screen vampires at Comic-Con. Adam Sandler’s putting the bite on audiences, too.
On opening day at the fan convention Thursday, Sony Pictures previewed footage of Sandler’s animated comedy “Hotel Transylvania,” in which he provides the voice of the grand-daddy of vampires, Dracula.
It’s the follow-up to a rare flop for Sandler, whose string of hits came to an end this summer with the dud “That’s My Boy,” co-starring Andy Samberg.
Opening Sept. 28, “Hotel Transylvania” against co-stars Samberg, who provides the voice of a human falling for Dracula’s vampire daughter.
“Hotel Transylvania” director Genndy Tartakovsky says he’s not worried that Sandler and Samberg are coming off a flop. The filmmaker says his PG-rated family tale is wildly different from the R-rated “That’s My Boy.”
“Movies go up and down, and I don’t think there’s every been a history of one movie flopping and then a career ending for that person,” Tartakovsky said in an interview. “There are a lot of rebounds to this business.
“And our film’s for a different audience, so we weren’t worried either way. Our movie stands alone, really well on its own, and it’s Dracula with Adam’s voice. It’s a family film.”
The voice cast includes Selena Gomez, Kevin James, Steve Buscemi, Jon Lovitz, David Spade, Cee Lo Green and Molly Shannon.
Sony’s “That’s My Boy” was a departure for Sandler, who has been one of Hollywood’s steadiest earners since the mid-1990s, with such $100 million hits as “The Longest Yard,” ’’Anger Management,” ’’Big Daddy,” ’’Click” and “Grown-Ups.”
With a raunchier edge than his usual PG-13 comedies, “That’s My Boy” failed to pack in Sandler’s fan base of males in their teens and 20s, the movie taking in just $36 million.
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