'Bridge' Work

Those high flying ''Spy Kids'' may have seen the last of the top spot on the movie chart. ''Bridget Jones's Diary,'' opening April 13, is likely to emerge as the most popular film of the crowded Easter weekend, according to movie analysts. Two teen targeted comedies should also steal a chunk of ''Spy Kids'' youthful audience: The PG-13 rated ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (starring Rachael Leigh Cook, Tara Reid, and Rosario Dawson) and ''Joe Dirt'' (David Spade, Spade's mullet, and Kid Rock), which opened Wednesday to get a jump on the holiday.

Box office tracking firm Reel Source predicts that ''Bridget,'' an adaptation of Helen Fielding's bestselling comic novel, could earn as much as $14 million over the weekend. Well reviewed preview screenings last weekend in New York and Los Angeles have helped overcome critical and fan disbelief that Texan Renee Zellweger could handle the role of the beloved British singleton. ''The controversy will definitely help big time,'' says Reel Source president Robert Bucksbaum. ''And single working women can be a powerful market if you tap into it.'' The popularity of the 1998 novel provides a ''built in audience,'' according to Gitesh Pandya of boxofficeguru.com. But he cautions that Zellweger has yet to prove her appeal as a lead at the box office. '''Bridget Jones' is much bigger than Renee Zellweger, '' he says, ''and enthusiasm for the novel might have declined in the last two years.''

Momentum from ''Josie'''s early opening could help it land in the No. 2 spot by Sunday, with an expected weekend total of about $13 million. The live action adaptation of the '70s cartoon series -- which features a lively rock soundtrack and hip young actresses having fun in cool clothes -- should attract a young female crowd. ''This is a film that could really take off,'' says Bucksbaum. As Pandya puts it: ''It's got that female empowerment meets 'Popstars' draw. They've a lot of glam and sex appeal. That's going to help bring the guys in, too.''

Industry watchers say that distributor Universal's MTV heavy ad campaign could help transform ''Josie'' into a hit comparable to January's surprise teen blockbuster ''Save the Last Dance.'' (''TRL'' host Carson Daly even has a cameo in ''Josie'' with his off screen sweetheart Reid.) ''They've done a good job marketing the film, no question,'' says John Shaw, president of tracking firm Movieline International.

Both flicks are likely to outperform ''Joe Dirt,'' which Bucksbaum calls a ''lonely guy movie in more ways than one.'' A comedy about a man's search for his lost parents, ''Dirt'' is expected to earn $10 million over the weekend. Despite opening in 2,500 theaters, ''Dirt'' will probably land in third or fourth place, according to analysts -- which means that ''Spy Kids,'' in its third week, could still end up dusting ''Dirt.''