Universal’s very good year continues apace. Joining Fast & Furious 7, Pitch Perfect 2, Jurassic World and other films on the American box office roll of honour, Despicable Me spin-off Minions opened with a huge success, the second biggest animated film debut in history with $115.2 million according to studio estimates.
Though the little yellow fellows had been predicted to do good business, arriving amidst a barrage of marketing tie-ins and surfing a wave of popularity from the two films featuring Steve Carell’s Gru, this is still a damned impressive opening. It’s also boosted by a relatively wide release outside the States, resulting in a $395.7 million global return from a basic reported budget of $74 million, not counting prints and ads. And with **Jurassic World managing to sneak back above Inside Out **for the weekend, the studio enjoyed a one-two punch. The dinosaur-laden blockbuster continued its strong run, taking in $18.1 million in its fifth weekend on the charts, and pushing its US take closer to $591 million, with more than $1.4 billion in the bank globally.
Pixar’s latest, which scored a surprise win last weekend, slipped slightly to third thanks to the new family film competition, but still held well, earning $17.1 million for $283.6 million in the US to date. Terminator Genisys fell one place to fourth, taking in $13.7 million, which was enough to keep it above the weekend’s second new opening, horror thriller The Gallows in fifth. The found-footage film didn’t quite put the box office in a noose, but with $10 million in its first weekend, the mini-budget indie (it cost around $100,000 to make originally, and was then boosted by about $2 million in extra shooting time and other costs by New Line/Warner Bros.) should turn a profit.
Magic Mike XXL was down to sixth with $9.6 million, while Ted 2 stumbled to seventh and $3.5 million. With $71.6 million in its US bank so far, it’s definitely not destined to reach the heights of its predecessor. Still, that was a better result than sci-fi thriller Self/Less, which saw Ryan Reynolds and Ben Kingsley starring. The film launched with a disappointing $5.3 million, but it has already made some money from foreign pre-sales, so will likely be quietly written off. Indian epic **Baahubali: The Beginning **(The One With Strong Arms) managed a surprise entry at nine, earning $3.5 million. And dog drama Max was sent down to 10th place, taking home $3.4 million for a $33.7 million US total to date.
To see the Minions overrun the dinosaurs and everyone else in the full chart listings head to Box Office Mojo. Para tu!