There was a new champion at the box office this weekend, but animated fare still reigned supreme.
Coming in first this week is The Secret Life of Pets (read our review), which brought in $103.1 million in its first three days. This is another notch on Illumination’s belt, as the studio has quickly become one of the leading figures in family films. Pets had several factors working for it as it opened, including a great marketing campaign that highlighted its fun premise, and strong word-of-mouth that sold it as something worth seeing in theaters. This is the second-highest debut for a film from Illumination (just behind Minions), and Pets has already made its $75 million production budget back through domestic ticket sales alone.
The film should prove to be a good hold as its run progresses. Though the marketplace is going to get crowded over the next few weeks with several high-profile genre films, none of them post a direct threat for Pets‘ target audience. Now that the buzz surrounding Finding Dory is starting to wind down, Pets will be the go-to choice for the lucrative demographic of families looking for a wholesome good time at the movies. This is just the beginning for Pets.
In second place once again is The Legend of Tarzan, which made $20.6 million in its second weekend. That’s just a 46.5 percent drop from its debut, meaning the film has decent legs. Though it hasn’t become a bona fide blockbuster, Tarzan is still posting solid numbers. It’s up to $81.4 million in the States, and $135.4 million globally. It still has a ways to go before it’s in the black, but perhaps it could still make its $180 million budget back.
In third is Pixar’s Finding Dory. The sequel obviously took a hit due to the presence of Secret Life of Pets, making $20.3 million in its fourth weekend. While it lost its standing as the weekend winner, Dory was able to surpass fellow Disney release Captain America: Civil War as the top earner of 2016 domestically. It currently stands at $422.5 million – nearly $20 million more than Civil War has made so far.
Opening in fourth is Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (read our review). The R-rated comedy pulled in $16.6 million in its first three days, which pretty much in line with the expectations. Names like Zac Efron and Anna Kendrick gave it a boost in star power, but the reviews proved to be a hurdle it couldn’t quite clear. Mike and Dave debuted better than previous Efron vehicles, but it’s hardly a crossover hit. It’s likely to fade away fairly soon since interest wasn’t really there.
Rounding out the top five is The Purge: Election Year. The horror sequel made $11.7 million in its second weekend, a 62.9 percent decrease from its opening. So far, it’s grossed $58.1 million Stateside.
In sixth is Central Intelligence. Making $8.1 million in its fourth weekend, the action/comedy has surpassed the $100 million plateau and is at $108.3 million domestically.
Coming in seventh is Independence Day: Resurgence. The sci-fi sequel brought in $7.7 million and has now made $91.4 million domestically.
The #8 film is The BFG. A rare box office dud from Steven Spielberg, the fantasy/adventure film made just $7.6 million in its second weekend, raising its domestic total to $38.7 million.
The Shallows comes in ninth with $4.8 million. Currently, it’s brought in $45.8 million during its U.S. run.
Capping off the top ten is Sultan. The film made $2.2 million in 283 theaters.
[NOTE: These are only weekend box office estimates — based on Friday and Saturday ticket sales coupled with adjusted expectations for Sunday. Official weekend box office results will be released on Monday, July 11 — at which time we’ll update this post with any changes.]
