SUBMITTED BY Stephanie

May 12, 2004 — USA Today writer, Scott Bowles, has taken a shot at how well Troy should fare at the box office. He breaks it down, looking at the actor's and director's intake at the box office with their past films and makes a guess at what could come out of this film for the actors and director. Take a gander, here's a preview:

Brad Pitt
A test of his box office muscle

No one would argue Pitt's superstar status. He earns $20 million a film and is a magazine-cover favorite. But the 40-year-old has yet to prove he has much box office clout. Since he broke out in Thelma & Louise in 1991, Pitt has anchored only one film, 1995's Seven, that took in more than $100 million. His average film makes $40.5 million.

Pitt's fortunes could change with Troy, in which he plays Greek warrior Achilles. "This is a huge movie for Brad because it will gauge whether he belongs with the other A-plus actors," says Gitesh Pandya of BoxOfficeGuru.com. "But it's something to worry about if the movie flops."

Eric Bana
The chance for an image face lift

Bana's last big movie, The Hulk, was considered the flop of 2003, even though it managed $132.2 million.

His portrayal of Trojan prince Hector is earning good buzz, however, and Bana could regain the reputation as a serious actor that he earned with 2002's Black Hawk Down.

Click on the link to read the rest of this interesting article.