In its third weekend of release, the comedy Identity Thief bounced back to the number one position among domestic releases, holding off two new wide releases and the action franchise that knocked it from its perch last weekend.

A quartet of new wide releases vied for audience attention on this unusual weekend – flanked by holidays on either side thanks to Valentine's Day and Presidents Day – with each one representing a wildly different style. 

The two big winners were the action sequel A Good Day to Die Hard and the hit novel adaptation Safe Haven.

Actress Jessica Alba is best known for playing heroes in such films as Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Spy Kids 4: All the Time in the World, and Machete, as well as the TV series Dark Angel. But she can soon be seen playing a villain for the first time in the new 3D computer animated family film Escape from Planet Earth, which opens in theaters on February 15th. 

In the film, Astronaut Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) finds himself caught in a trap when he responds to an SOS from a notoriously dangerous alien planet called …  Earth. When his straight-laced brother Gary (Rob Corddry), the head of their planet’s mission control, wants to launch a mission to save Scorch, their boss, the no-nonsense Lena (Alba) tries to stop him. Gary then begins a secret mission, along with the help of his family, to save his brother from Earth’s evil General Shanker (William Shatner). However, things are not as they seem, and Lena has been secretly helping Shanker, who she is desperately in love with.  In addition to Alba, Fraser, Corddry, and Shatner, the film boasts an incredible cast of voice talent including Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City: The Movie), Ricky Gervais (TV’s An Idiot Abroad), Craig Robinson (Hot Tub Time Machine), Sofia Vergara (The Three Stooges), Jane Lynch (Wreck-It Ralph), and George Lopez (Rio).

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Jessica Alba to discuss her work on Escape from Planet Earth, as well as two of her highly anticipated upcoming films – the Robert Rodriguez directed sequels – Machete Kills, and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For. The beautiful actress discussed her new animated movie, why she wanted to make it, how her daughter reacted to seeing the film, playing a villain, poking fun at her own image, working with director Cal Bunker, voice acting, reuniting with Robert Rodriguez on the upcoming sequels, her role in Machete Kills, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, Rodriguez and comic book legend Frank Miller’s relationship, Nancy’s larger arc in the new film, and having scenes with both Bruce Willis and Mickey Rourke. 

Synopsis: Gary, a friendly alien and failed inventor from Planet Baab travels to earth to find his wife and daughter who crashed while on the way to an intergalactic gymnastics meet.  Upon his arrival, Gary is captured by humans and sent to the secret alien prison known as “Area 51.”  Gary makes friends with a rag tag hilarious group of fellow alien inmates and plots the greatest jailbreak in the history of the universe, all the while, distracting his human captors with wild and crazy inventions and resisting oddball brainwashing.  Will Gary and the other aliens escape Area 51?  Will he find his family again and return safely to planet Baab?  Only time and one amazing adventure will tell!

Opening in theaters on February 15th is the new 3D computer animated family film Escape from Planet Earth, which was directed by storyboard artist Cal Brunker (Despicable Me). The movie features an amazing cast of voice actors including Rob Corddry (Warm Bodies), Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City: The Movie), Brendan Fraser (Stand Off), Jessica Alba (Sin City), Jonathan Morgan Heit (Date Night), William Shatner (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan), Craig Robinson (Hot Tub Time Machine), Sofia Vergara (The Three Stooges), Jane Lynch (Wreck-It Ralph), George Lopez (Rio), and Ricky Gervais (TV's An Idiot Abroad). 

IAR's Managing Editor Jami Philbrick recently had the immense pleasure of sitting down with legendary film and television actor William Shatner for an extensive interview to talk about his work on Escape from Planet Earth, as well as his unique musical career, and the possibility of a T.J. Hooker movie based on his classic TV series of the same name. The iconic performer discussed his latest film, why he wanted to be a part of the production, poking fun at his Sci-Fi legacy, similarities between his name and his character's name, why he doesn't like watching his own work but might like seeing this film, plans to take his grandkids to see the movie, 3D, live-action acting vs. animation work, his musical career, working with Ben Folds, his upcoming album, why he likes playing with music and words, and the truth behind the rumors of a T.J. Hooker movie. 

Later this year, Jessica Alba will star in not one, but two different sequels for director Robert Rodriguez. 

These sequels, Machete Kills and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, are set for nationwide release within just weeks of each other, and even though they're both more than eight months away, Alba is sharing some exclusive insights on the Machete and Sin City follow-ups.