The news is that this week when The Hunger Games came onto the pre release tracking (which is what the studios use to gauge awareness and desire to see a film) it was huge — so huge that experts are saying it could open between $70 and $100 million.

Looking at one year ago in the same date slot (3rd weekend in March), Limitless grossed almost $19 million. The Hunger Games will clearly outperform that number but what is so interesting is the wide range of the prediction. This film is another unprecdented film for the business and this is what excites me. It excites me because unlike Twilight, this is a movie that stars a young woman who is clearly a STRONG female character and that boys, girls, men and women want to see this film. This will be a huge cross over and while it won’t make Harry Potter money, that series is a good model for this.

This is a cross-over film and while the numbers of young women and girls who go and see will be huge, the numbers across other quadrants will also be big.

So while Twilight set the stage for the young female market with a $69 million opening (on Thnaksgiving weekend), The Hunger Games is going to take it to a whole new place.

This is going to be a really interesting month to watch as this all rolls out. I also want people to keep in mind that this film has a female producer — Nina Jacobson.

And PS Suzanne Collins posted on her Facebook site that she has seen the film and likes it.

Massive Tracking for ‘Hunger Games’ Could Mean a $100 Mil Opening (Hollywood Reporter)

‘Hunger Games’ could open at $100 million, surveys suggest (LA Times)