New Movies October 2: Mostly The Martian

After a very crowded weekend at the box office last week, this weekend is going to be markedly less busy. Only one marquee new release is scheduled to hit theaters, and since it's likely to be a hit, most other films are staying out of its way.

The almost certain winner of the weekend is going to be The Martian, a sci-fi adventure based on a novel by Andy Weir. In the film, Matt Damon plays an astronaut stranded on Mars after he's inadvertently left behind by his crewmates. He must find a way to survive on the inhospitable planet until he can be rescued. Critics so far have praised both Damon's performance and Ridley Scott's direction, so this one has potential blockbuster written all over it.

There won't be much going on elsewhere at the box office this weekend. The Walk, in which Joseph Gordon Levitt plays a daredevil tightrope walker, will see limited release in IMAX theaters before going wide next week. This release strategy was employed by Everest last month, and it didn't work quite as well as was hoped. FBI thriller Sicario also goes into wide release this week after a couple of weeks in limited release.