Smoke and Mirrors: A Star-Studded Christmas Release Window

"Good evening, viewers. You're watching Coming Soon to a Theater Near You on NBC's Entertainment Channel 3. I'm your host, Mary."

"As everyone knows, Christmas is a time for family reunions, big meals, and waiting for Santa Claus. For the film industry, it's also the most important release window of the year. Every year at this time, Hollywood's major studios serve moviegoers across America and around the world one delicious cinematic feast after another."

"This year is no exception!"

Mary, the show's host, spoke with confidence. Over the next few minutes, she listed a whole slew of films that were about to premiere—or had already been confirmed for release during the Christmas window in December.

"First up is Warner Bros. Pictures. Since the early '90s, Warner has launched several animated-live-action hybrid films, starting with Looney Tunes: Back in Action, which was a box-office hit. The films that followed, such as Space Jam, starring basketball legend Jordan, also performed well at the box office and earned high praise."

"And this time, Warner is bringing us Scooby-Doo!"

Scooby-Doo?

What a familiar, classic cartoon character!

A "dog" born in the '60s, he was undoubtedly a star in film history. Now he was about to return to the big screen, and he was sure to draw a large audience.

Produced and distributed by Warner, the film had a production budget of $72 million. Teen idols Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar starred, while renowned British comedian "Mr. Bean," Rowan Atkinson, played the villain.

"Warner Bros., one of Hollywood's Big Six, has officially announced that the film will be released in early December this year."

"But is that... all Warner has to offer?"

"Of course not!"

On December 20, Warner's Two Weeks Notice would hit theaters. Its stars were Sandra Bullock, who had previously