HOLLYWOOD, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- The reported chumminess of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie on the set of "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" has sparked extra pre-release press for the movie.
But whether that speculation and the breakup of Pitt and his wife Jennifer Aniston will help the film at the box office after its June 10 release is a matter of debate. Pitt and Jolie play married assassins assigned to kill each other.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, sources close to the production and inside Fox say the film is benefiting from the attention.
"This is like hitting the jackpot," said one studio insider.
But an executive at a rival studio said media coverage of the Pitt-Jolie rumors and the actor's failing marriage to Aniston could pose a challenge to Fox.
"The people at Fox are probably just dying right now, trying to figure out what the next steps are," said the executive, who asked not to be named, because they are going to have to keep the press focused on 'Smith' and not on who broke up whom."
A spokesman for Regency said there are no plans to deviate from the company's original promotional strategy for the film.
