Dora the Explorer’s quest at the box office has begun as Paramount’s “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” earned $1.25 million from Thursday preview screenings.
By comparison, the last film produced by Nickelodeon Movies, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows,” earned $2 million from previews in June 2016. Paramount is projecting a $15-17 million opening for “Dora and the Lost City of Gold,” which was produced on a $49 million budget. But analysts who spoke with TheWrap earlier this week said that it is possible that the family film overindexes and opens in the low $20 million range.
Directed by James Bobin, “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” is a slightly more mature but still family friendly spin on the “Dora the Explorer” Nick Jr. TV series, as Dora (Isabela Moner) teams up with her cousin Diego and a strange jungle inhabitant (Jeff Wahlberg and Eugenio Derbez) to rescue her captured parents (Eva Longoria and Michael Peña). The film has a 77% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
The highest performing new release on Thursday was Lionsgate/CBS Films’ “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” which made $2.33 million from approximately 2,500 screens. Based on the trilogy of young adult horror anthology books by Alvin Schwartz, the film is projected for an $15-17 million opening against a $25 million budget. Critics have enjoyed the film with an 81% Rotten Tomatoes score.
Also opening on Thursday was Fox’s “The Art of Racing in the Rain,” which made $450,000 and is projected for a $6-8 million weekend. By comparison, Universal’s dog film “A Dog’s Journey” earned $250,000 in previews this past May and opened to $8 million. Directed by Simon Curtis, “The Art of Racing in the Rain” has received mixed reviews and a 50% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
The release of the dog film starring Milo Ventimiglia and Kevin Costner comes in a week where Disney reported a $170 million operating loss by 20th Century Fox in the first financial quarter since it acquired the studio. With no films grossing over $100 million domestically this year, North American grosses for Fox have fallen 65% year over year.
All three of these films, plus Warner Bros./New Line’s “The Kitchen,” are expected to fall below the second weekend of Universal’s “Hobbs & Shaw,” which opened to $60 million last weekend and is expected to drop 50-55% and earn a weekend total in the high $20 million range.
5 Biggest Summer Box Office Showdowns, Including 'Aladdin' vs. 'Godzilla' (Photos)
This summer's movie release slate sees notably fewer direct conflicts between films. Most major releases have at least two weeks distance between each other and will have time to make their fortunes as the biggest show in theaters. But some degree of competition is inevitable, so how will these films stand against tough competition?
Disney/Universal/Warner Bros.
"Pokemon: Detective Pikachu" vs. "Avengers: Endgame" (May 10)
Nothing is going to stop "Avengers" from becoming the biggest summer hit of all time and smashing all the records "Infinity War" earned last year. But "Endgame" could face a challenge in its third weekend: Warner Bros.' "Pokemon: Detective Pikachu" has been gathering buzz, especially among nostalgic millennials, and could stake out a $600-700 million global run.
Warner Bros./Marvel Studios
"Aladdin" vs. "Godzilla: King of Monsters" vs. "Rocketman"(May 31)
The end of May will see three very different films compete against each other, and there's no guarantee any of them will be a hit. For all its domination, Memorial Day weekend has been a source of disappointment for Disney, and buzz hasn't been strong for this year's studio entry: an "Aladdin" remake starring Will Smith. Warner Bros. counter-programs with "Godzilla: King of Monsters" with kaiju blowing stuff up. And both face off against the second weekend of Paramount's "Rocketman" which will try to do with Elton John what "Bohemian Rhapsody" did with Queen.
Warner Bros./Disney
"Men in Black: International" vs. "Dark Phoenix"(June 14)
Mid-June will see the arrival of this season's two riskiest blockbusters. Buzz over Fox's final "X-Men" film, "Dark Phoenix," has been tepid at best, and beating the $543 million global run of "X-Men: Apocalypse" is not looking likely. A week after "Dark Phoenix" comes Sony's "Men in Black" spinoff, sans Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. In their place is "Thor: Ragnarok" duo Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson, whose chemistry will be the key selling point.
Fox/Sony
"Stuber" vs. "21 Bridges" vs. "Spider-Man: Far From Home" (July 12)
Sony could very well see the money deluge for "Avengers" overflow into its coffers with the Marvel Studios release, "Spider-Man: Far From Home." Expect the film to dominate the long July 4 weekend -- but it faces competition in its second week from STX's thriller "21 Bridges" with Chadwick Boseman Fox's action comedy "Stuber" with Kumail Nanjiani and Dave Bautista.
STX/Fox/Sony
"Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" vs. "The Lion King"(July 26)
While you can Disney's latest live-action remake to dominate when it opens July 19, holding a second weekend may be challenging since he faces Quentin Tarantino's star-heavy period film "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood." (The auteur's last summer film, 2009'a "Inglourious Basterds," managed to gross $321 million worldwide.
Sony/Disney
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Summer Movie Preview 2019: Will the season’s biggest blockbusters smother their competition?
This summer's movie release slate sees notably fewer direct conflicts between films. Most major releases have at least two weeks distance between each other and will have time to make their fortunes as the biggest show in theaters. But some degree of competition is inevitable, so how will these films stand against tough competition?