FRIDAY AFTERNOON: And we are on a roll at the box office: Any doubt that Disney+ has kept Pixar fans at home and outta of movie theaters, well that theory can just go out the window as Inside Out 2 is heading for the biggest opening of the year to date with $120M-$130M. Some rival studios believe it’s much higher, but we haven’t had a fire-breathing four-quad in a while, so everybody’s getting excited with projections. At least $56M is in the bank today including last night’s $13M. Sources tell me that there’s a huge turnout by Hispanic and Latino moviegoers in walk-ups, hence the big business.
In second, Sony’s Bad Boys: Ride or Die is keeping up against the whale that is Inside Out 2, down only -50% in weekend 2 with $28M and a $7.5M Friday.
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FRIDAY AM: We got a hit on our hands as Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out 2 clocked $13M from Thursday previews that began at 3 p.m., the best so far in 2024. beating Dune: Part Two‘s $12M. The current Rotten Tomatoes scores are a 93% Certified Fresh rating from critics and 95% from moviegoers, setting up the movie for a potential $100M+ opening weekend. The running overseas cume is $22.3M.
Look for Inside Out 2 to blow past its $135M global opening projection.
You can easily say that when it comes to Pixar brands, absence makes the heart grow fonder. Also, unlike 2022’s Lightyear, the sequel brought back most of the voice cast except for Bill Hader. Out of the gate, Inside Out 2 is 4½ stars with Thursday preview audiences on Screen Engine/Comscore’s PostTrak, with 57% general audience, 23% parents and 21% kids under 12. Parents gave it five stars and kids 4½, the latter being girl-heavy at 52%, and parents being mom-heavy at 73%. Overall definite recommend is 72%. See, people and jaded Wall Street media? Moviegoing is still a lucrative pastime!
RELATED: 10 Most Anticipated Movies of Summer 2024 From ‘Inside Out 2’ to ‘Twisters’
Comps for Inside Out 2 are last year’s The Little Mermaid ($10.3M previews, $96M 3-day) and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ($17.4M previews, $120.7M 3-day), 2022’s Minions: The Rise of Gru ($10.8M, $107M 3-day) and 2019’s Toy Story 4 ($12M previews, $120.9M). The record previews for a Pixar movie belong to Incredibles 2 at $18.5M, which resulted in a $182.7M opening in 2018.
RELATED: ‘Inside Out 2’ Craftspeople On Reworking Riley’s World For A Sequel & Bringing In New Emotions While Staying “True And Faithful To The Original Voice”
Inside Out 2‘s previews bury that of the 2015 original, which did $3.7M in previews that began at 7 p.m., which yielded a $90.4M opening.
Inside Out 2 is booked at 4,400 theaters with all the hormonal power of PLFs, Dbox, Dolby, Imax, etc.
RELATED: ‘Inside Out 2’ Off To Joyful Start At International Box Office; Sets Multiple Opening Day Records For Pixar
In more good news for moviegoing, Sony’s Bad Boys franchise is crossing the $1 billion global threshold today. Thursday stateside take for Bad Boys: Ride or Die was $4.48M, bringing its running cume, and first week, to $79.24M at 3,885 theaters.
The rest of the week and Thursday’s box office happened as follows:
2. The Garfield Movie (Sony) 3,959 theaters, Thursday $890K (-24% from Wed), -24%, Wk $14.9M/Total $73.5M/Wk 3
3. IF (Par) 3,582 theaters Thur $711K (-28%) Wk $11.9M, Total $97.4M/Wk 4
4. The Watchers (NL) 3,351 theaters, Thur $610K (-8%), Wk $10M/Wk 1
5. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (20th/Dis) 3,155 theaters, Thur $615K (-2%), Wk $8.2M, $152.6M/Wk 5
