New Movies January 13: A Deluge of New Releases

A relative flood of new movies hits theaters this weekend, and one of them is probably going to take the number-one slot on the box-office chart. Exactly which movie that will be, however, is an open question.

The first of the week's new wide releases, and one of the contenders for the top spot, is Patriots Day, a dramatization of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. It stars Mark Wahlberg and was directed by Peter Berg; the pair previously collaborated on last year's Deepwater Horizon.

Another contender is Live by Night, a period crime drama written by, directed by and starring Ben Affleck. Affleck is always an unknown quantity when it comes to box office, but he did pretty well last year with The Accountant.

Next up is Sleepless, a crime thriller starring Jamie Foxx. Foxx hasn't been much of a box-office draw lately, but with a little luck, his movie could be in the thick of the fight this week.

The fourth new wide release this week is The Bye Bye Man, a horror film that plays off the Slenderman tale of a supernatural killer. Don't expect this one to compete for number one, but it could make the battle for slots further down the list messier.

Finally, there's Monster Trucks, a campy fantasy comedy aiming at a younger audience. Expectations for this one are so low, the movie's studio has already written it off as a major loss before it even opens.