Critically acclaimed, high-profile animated film “How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” predictably dominated the US Friday box office.
The new film earned about $17.5 million during its inaugural day of release. More than 5x that posted by the day’s #2 film, the tally positions “The Hidden World” for an opening weekend in the $57-65 million range.
Such a bow would represent a franchise high for “How To Train Your Dragon.” The original film earned $43.7 million in its first weekend, while “How To Train Your Dragon 2” started with $49.5 million.
“Alita: Battle Angel,” last weekend’s winner, took #2 with $3.1 million in Friday receipts. It earn about $9.5-$12 million over the course of the full weekend.
After bowing on select screens last weekend, “Fighting With My Family” earned $2.6 million in its first day of wide release. It took third place Friday but may drop to #4 or #5 for the weekend with $7-8.5 million.
“Isn’t It Romantic,” Friday’s #4 film, earned $2.2 million Friday. It should post a full weekend tally in the $7-8 million range.
“The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” took fifth place Friday with just under $2.2 million, but it should jump to #3 for the full weekend with $9-10 million in three-day earnings.
