Christopher Nolan is on his way to earning another box office hit with his critically acclaimed WWII film, “Dunkirk.” The film was expected to make $30-40 million in its opening this weekend, but thanks to incredibly strong word-of-mouth, it is now looking at around $51 million from 3,720 screens after making $19.8 million on day one.

Since breaking into the public consciousness in 2005 with “Batman Begins,” Nolan has put out a series of hit films both original and adapted. With this opening, “Dunkirk” has a higher start than the $49.5 million five-day opening earned by Nolan’s last film, “Interstellar,” in November 2014. That film went on to post a $188 million total and $675 million worldwide en route to five Oscar nominations.

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If “Dunkirk” can get a high Friday-to-Saturday jump, the projected weekend total could get closer to the $62.7 million made by Nolan’s summer 2010 hit “Inception.” Like that Best Picture nominee, the Oscar buzz surrounding Nolan’s take on the famous Dunkirk evacuation of 1940 could push it to another strong multiple against a reported $150 million budget.

There was skepticism at the start of the summer movie season over whether a PG-13 rated war film could gain traction in the middle of July, outside of the usual fall release frame for such prestige films. But quality has seen “Dunkirk” through, with audiences giving it an A- on CinemaScore and critics giving it 92 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Overseas, “Dunkirk” has made $21.2 million from 46 markets, including a $3.7 million opening day total in the U.K., double the opening day return for “Interstellar.”

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In second place is Universal’s “Girls Trip,” which is set to break the recent slump for adult comedies. Against a reported budget of $19 million, the female-fronted party comedy is looking at an opening of $28 million from 2,591 screens, right at the top of the $23-28 million range set pre-weekend by independent trackers. It’s by far the best opening weekend for an R-rated comedy in 2017, and is on pace to exceed the $26.2 million opening made in 2011 by another hit Universal raunchy ladies’ comedy, “Bridesmaids.” That film went on to gross $169.1 million domestically and $288.3 million worldwide. “Girls Trip” has been received just as warmly as “Bridesmaids,” holding 88 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and a sterling A+ on CinemaScore.

The news was not nearly as good for STX/EuropaCorp’s “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets,” a film with a budget of $180 million that is bombing hard with an estimated $16 million opening after making $6.5 million on Friday. Pre-weekend projections had the film making $18-22 million, but now “Valerian” looks like it will not be able to beat holdover totals for “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and “War for the Planet of the Apes.” Written and directed by the man behind “The Fifth Element,” Luc Besson, and based on the French comic book series “Valerian and Laureline,” the film has received a decidedly mixed reaction from critics and audiences with a 55 percent RT score and a B- on CinemaScore.

Also Read: 'Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets' Review: Luc Besson's Loony Space Saga Is Gorgeous Nonsense

Among holdovers, “War for the Planet of the Apes” comes in third with an estimated $21.7 million, pushing it to a ten-day total of just under $100 million domestic. “Spider-Man: Homecoming” is fourth, pushing past the $250 million domestic mark with an estimated $20.5 million third frame, meaning it will pass the $262 million domestic total made by 2012’s “The Amazing Spider-Man” in the coming week.

But the biggest news is that “Wonder Woman,” in its eighth weekend, is storming towards the $400 million domestic milestone and is now just $500,000 behind “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” with a $386.5 million domestic cume. On Saturday, the same day Warner Bros. is expected to officially announce the film’s sequel at San Diego Comic-Con, the film will become the highest grossing movie of the summer and pass “Guardians’ for the No. 2 domestic spot among 2017 films, second only to “Beauty and the Beast,” which made $504 million.

All 10 Christopher Nolan Movies Ranked, From 'Memento' to 'Dunkirk' (Photos)

Director Christopher Nolan has become well-known for blasting audiences’ brains with mind-bending, over-the-top spectacles. His latest, “Dunkirk,” is capturing critical acclaim — but how does it stack up to his other efforts? Here's TheWrap's definitive ranked list of his movies.
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10. "The Dark Knight Rises" (2012)

That you can’t understand a damn thing Bane says is the least of this movie’s problems. It’s heavy social politics and bleak ideologies of hope in the modern day are a drag for a superhero movie, and Nolan’s twists and parables strain credulity.
Warner Bros.
9. "Interstellar" (2014)

On the trajectory of Nolan movies getting more and more bogged down in their complications, “Interstellar” is probably the pinnacle. It has its poignant moments — Matthew McConaughey’s despair-wracked sobs are pretty unforgettable — but gets lost in time travel, temporal displacement, global warming, interpersonal drama and a weird sometimes-documentary style. None of the ideas gets the right amount of attention and the whole thing is a bit of a mess.
Paramount
8. "Insomnia" (2002)

It's really the performances this remake of a Norwegian film work. Robin Williams delivers some of the best dramatic work of his career as the primary suspect in the murder of a teenage girl in an Alaska town. It’s more of a mid-budget stepping stone ahead of "Batman Begins," but Al Pacino slowly losing his grip on reality ratchets up the tension.
Warner Bros.
7. "Following" (1998)

Many have labeled “Following” as just a student film. It’s better than that. Nolan's debut feature features his penchant for rules and brisk pacing. The story concerns a man who follows people around and becomes protege of a petty house thief (who shares a name with an "Inception" character, Cobb). And this Cobb has philosophies about creating chaos that are a dry run for The Joker’s craving to watch the world burn.
Zeitgeist Films
6. "Inception" (2010)

This is Nolan’s “Vertigo,” a movie that combines everything that has defined his career into one ambitious opus. He takes the world of dreams and applies his signature rules and rigid structure into a bombastic, mind-bending thriller that's sometimes awe-inspiring and sometimes maddeningly exhausting with its exposition.
Warner Bros.
5. "Batman Begins" (2005)

Nolan reinvigorated the onscreen character of Batman with a more intimate look at Bruce Wayne’s origins. The more serious take on the hero. Thanks to Nolan’s focus on a man figuring out how to be a symbol rather than just punching bad guys, he helped make “Batman Begins” a template for superhero movies hoping to be more realistic and less cartoonish. And having Liam Neeson in your movie doesn't hurt.
Warner Bros.
4. "Memento" (2000)

The movie that first really started to tip people off to Nolan is a noir-esque mystery told in reverse, with Guy Pearce's detective unable to form new short-term memories. The movie’s construction keeps the audience as confused as protagonist Leonard, but once it all comes together, the frightening story of how people manipulate each other, and themselves, blows minds in the best way.
Newmarket Films
3. "The Prestige" (2006)

Michael Caine’s three rules in “The Prestige” could also define Nolan’s filmmaking. Above all, Nolan is a showman who stages something elaborate and magical and then wants to show you how it’s done. Fittingly, “The Prestige” is Nolan’s most twist-filled and rewatchable film.
Warner Bros.
2. "The Dark Knight" (2008)

It’s bolstered by Heath Ledger’s otherworldly, swan song of a performance, but “The Dark Knight” redefined grizzly, post-9/11 neo-noir. Its twists, moral choices and provocative themes on heroism upped the games for superhero movies and blockbusters for all time.
Warner Bros.
1. "Dunkirk" (2017)

Nolan’s sprawling WWII epic is quite possibly his simplest movie. Despite its enormous scale and running three tales in parallel with some non-linear storytelling, the minimal use of dialogue and powerful performances makes “Dunkirk” incredibly tense and human. It's a different kind of war movie -- and Nolan accomplishes a lot by holding back (some) of his usual complexity.
Warner Bros.

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Where does auteur’s new WWII drama land?

Director Christopher Nolan has become well-known for blasting audiences’ brains with mind-bending, over-the-top spectacles. His latest, “Dunkirk,” is capturing critical acclaim — but how does it stack up to his other efforts? Here's TheWrap's definitive ranked list of his movies.

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