Animated sequels in recent history are hardly a slam dunk at the box office, for every Toy Story 3 there are three Happy Feet 2. Thankfully for all of the principles involved, Despicable Me 2 was every bit the hit the former was.
The popularity of the Minions can not be denied as Despicable Me 2 brought it more money than any animated film has ever earned over a five-day span. Granted the Fourth coming on a Thursday is a near perfect storm for a major release, but the final tally of over $142 Million speaks for itself. Even when you shave the first two days off the tally, the traditional three-day weekend was right in line with the monster $80+ million Monsters University brought in a few weeks ago.
Coming up in second place for the holiday stretch was the sputtering Lone Ranger. It seems like high-profile bombs have become commonplace, and everything about the action western screamed this would be another one. Guess what? It was! Coming in at just over $29 million for the three-day, and just under $49 since Wednesday, the film was not the same abject failure John Carter was, but it is far from the performance one expects from the same crew that gave us the Pirates of the Caribbean films.
Next down the Box Office line is The Heat, which was a big hit last weekend and dropped a very slight 36% during the Holiday weekend. The film didn’t look like anything special coming down the line, but with a solid pedigree, and a good marketing campaign, the film managed to find a groove and become a bona-fide hit.
Also of note this weekend was World War Z, which continues its surprise hit run towards $500 million at the world-wide box office. The film has been mocked and distrusted from early on here at The Flickcast, but credit is due where credit is earned. The film has earned a following and carved a place for itself alongside the original book as a separate, but worthwhile entity.
Next weekend brings Pacific Rim. No wit, no joke. JUST. GO. SEE. PACIFIC RIM!
