Hollywood’s making money again

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Bill Radke: There is one industry in America that’s never had it better: Hollywood appears on its way to a record year. Here’s Marketplace’s Steve Henn.

Steve Henn: Hollywood’s making money again.

Vin Diesel: Just like old times.

Vin Diesel kicked off the year with Fast and Furious. The fourth installment of the street-racing franchise brought back the original cast and brought in $71 millions in its opening weekend.

This weekend, the staring attraction in malls around America is a flick about the genesis of a mutant with steel claws. That’s right: another X-men movie. Hollywood hopes X-Men Origins: Wolverine will bring in $100 million by Sunday.

X-Men: Who are you people? What kind of place is this?

So far this year, teens have helped drive attendance at theaters up more than 15 percent. The industry’s on track to break the $10 billion barrier at the box office. Last year, higher ticket prices helped Hollywood earn a record $9.7 billion, but attendance at theaters actually fell.

I’m Steve Henn for Marketplace.