LOS ANGELES, CA, May 24 /PRNewswire/ -- X-Men 3: The Last Stand opens this Friday, May 26, and the third installment of the X-Men franchise is expected to draw large crowds across the U.S. during its opening weekend. Sportsbook.com, the world's largest online sportsbook and casino, is now offering odds on the film's opening weekend U.S. gross.

With a star-studded cast of household names including Halle Berry, Sir Ian McKellen and Hugh Jackman, industry experts are anticipating a very profitable opening weekend for X-Men 3. And if history is any indication, fans are expected to come out in droves to watch their mutant heroes. While X-Men grossed a whopping $157 million in 2000, X-Men 2 eclipsed that mark in 2003, grossing $213 million.

The success of X-Men 3 remains uncertain, however, as Bryan Singer, director of X-Men and X-Men 2 has been replaced by director Brett Ratner. Ratner, who has directed a number of blockbuster films such as Rush Hour, Rush Hour 2 and Red Dragon, has not fared as well with movie critics as his X-Men predecessor.

Sportsbook.com continues to offer bettors an exciting new option to wager on the opening weekend gross of major film releases throughout the year.

"Each of the other X-Men movies has rocked at the box office and people love their superhero movies," said Alex Czajkowski, Marketing Director, Sportsbook.com. "Everybody bets and everybody is wondering whether X-Men 3 will live up to the fans' expectations."

X-Men 3: The Last Stand ----------------------- What will X-Men 3 gross in its opening weekend across the U.S. (May 19 - 21)? Gross Odds Betting Trend ----- ---- ------------- 0 to 35 Million 50-1 11.6% 35.1 to 50 Million 10-1 19.0% 50.1 to 60 Million 3-1 14.4% 60.1 to 70 Million 2-1 12.6% 70.1 to 80 Million 5-2 7.5% 80.1 to 90 Million 3-1 5.1% 90.1 to 100 Million 5-1 6.8% 100.1 to 110 Million 8-1 6.7% 110.1 to 120 Million 15-1 3.5% 120.1 Million or More 20-1 12.7% About Sportsbook.com:

Sportsbook.com is the largest sportsbook and casino on the planet, where millions of adult Americans bet on sports, play poker and enjoy blackjack and other casino games online in a regulated and licensed jurisdiction. Named the "Best US Sports Book" by the industry's top magazine, eGaming Review, Sportsbook.com has been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its nearest competitors in the US, Sportsbook.com has been the first to achieve every significant industry milestone, from record turnover to active users to number of bets--achieving a peak of fifteen bets per second. As the US online gaming leader, the firm and it's products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, USA Today and in every major newspaper in the US.

Sportsbook.com is the flagship brand for Sportingbet PLC, , the world's leading publicly traded online gaming company. Sportingbet PLC, headquartered in London, England, has been voted number one in the industry for two years in a row by the authoritative eGaming Review Power 50 Survey.

CONTACT: Patrick Erlich, Sportsbook.com, sportsbook@mediaprofile.com,
1-866-505-2900 or (416) 504-8464 ext 259

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