Jurassic World becomes the second film in history to cross $200 million on its opening domestic weekend.
It is turning out to be a very, very good year for Universal. Despite 2015 beginning with forecasts of it being Disney's year (and its Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm acquisitions), Universal already beat Avengers: Age of Ultron at the global market when Furious 7 grossed $1.5 billion, and now their prehistoric franchise from a time gone by (the 1990s) has returned with JurassicWorld. And the 3D IMAX release is devouring at least $204.5 million at this weekend's domestic box office!
Proving people's love for dinosaurs, Steven Spielberg, and Chris Pratt is still truly universal, the first official projection for the weekend by Deadline has Jurassic World chomping down on over $200 million, making it easily the biggest opening of 2015 (Avengers: Age of Ultron took $191 million) and putting it within biting distance of 2012's The Avengers, which bowed at $207.4 million. Indeed, some box office analysts still predict that Jurassic World's opening could be higher, suggesting the film might still take the all-time opening record from Disney's super-team.
This is pretty remarkable news for a film that was being forecast just three days ago as earning between $115 to $125 million. Universal even lowballed their own expectations at just over $100 million in case it didn't take the June opening record (previously Man of Steel with $116 million). Yet, that seemed to be moot for the fourth Jurassic Park film that came with the built-in nostalgia and hype as being the first installment in the series in 14 years. And considering Jurassic World generally favorable reviews (we found it wildly fun if a bit shallow when compared to the 1993 classic), this marked the first good dinosaurs-run-amok film since the original picture 22 years ago.
Coupled with Chris Pratt at the height of his post-Guardians popularity, this proved to be a more powerful dinosaur bite than anyone anticipated. Who knows, perhaps audiences were just hungry for something other than superheroes? After all, it is quite amusing that a third sequel to a two decades old franchise feels remarkably fresh in the age of shared caped universes.
So what did you think of the dinosaur on dinosaur action in Jurassic World? Was it the best ride of the summer? Let us know in the comment section below.
