It looks like it’s going to be a good weekend for the wizarding world.Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themkicked off its domestic box office run on Thursday night with $8.75 million, putting it on track to top the weekend box office easily and score at least $75 million. That’s where the current forecasting puts theHarry Potterprequel, but it’s possible the film could soar even higher thanks to positive reviews and a post-election national mood that’s in the toilet. Folks are looking for any kind of optimism or escape, andFantastic Beastsprovides that in spades with a bevy of adorable CG creatures to boot.
This is good news for Warner Bros., which had a lot riding onFantastic Beasts. The film did everything right—it marks the screenwriting debut ofJ.K. Rowling, directorDavid Yates(who helmed the last 4Potters) returned to take the helm, and the same design team crafted the world—but WB still had to sell audiences on aHarry Pottermovie without Harry Potter. Against a budget of $180 million, and with a studio that sorely needs a new franchise, the success ofFantastic Beastswill no doubt be welcome news.
Indeed, Warner Bros. has had a so-so 2016, but got off to a rocky start withBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The superhero pic was intended to be a bona fide mega-hit, kicking off the DC Extended Universe with a bang, but instead was met with a mixed response from critics and audiences and scored a respectable but not otherworldly $873.2 million.Suicide Squad, the riskier DC proposition, fared better with $745.6 million at the box office which, while lower thanBatman v Superman, is an incredibly solid number in relation toZack Snyder’s film given that it doesn’t feature the two most iconic superheroes of all time.
So Warner Bros. has been looking for something to fill thatHarry Potterhole ever sinceDeathly Hallows – Part 2hit theaters in 2011, and it looks like they may have found it inFantastic Beasts. Pre-production is already underway onFantastic Beasts 2withJohnny Depponboard to fillthe Big Bad positionfor this new franchise, which will span a total of five films. Moreover, Rowling is in this thing for a long-haul as she’s agreed to write all of the features.
Exactly how high willFantastic Beastsgo, and will it have the legs to stay atop the box office over Thanksgiving next week? We’ll find out in short order, but with these Thursday night totals, things are off to a good start.
For comparison’s sake, here are the opening weekends for all of the previousHarry Pottermovies:
Opening Weekend
Deathly Hallows – Part 2
$169,189,427
Deathly Hallows – Part 1
$125,017,372
Goblet of Fire
$102,685,961
Prisoner of Azkaban
$93,687,367
Sorcerer’s Stone
$90,294,621
Chamber of Secrets
$88,357,488
Half-Blood Prince
$77,835,727
Order of the Phoenix
$77,108,414
