"Kingsman: The Golden Circle" lassoed $3.4 million at the Thursday previews, more than double of what the first "Kingsman" earned in 2015 ($1.4 million).
Both the studio and independent trackers anticipate the film to open in the low $40 million range against a $104 million budget. The sequel's 2015 predecessor, "Kingsman: The Secret Service," grossed a $36.2 million opening from its mid-February release, going on to gross $128.2 million domestic and $414 million worldwide against an $81 million budget.
Reviews have been mixed -- the film holds a score of 52 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. "The Golden Circle" stars Taron Egerton, Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Pedro Pascal, Mark Strong, Halle Berry and Channing Tatum, and was directed by Matthew Vaughn.
"Kingsman: The Golden Circle" sees dapper super-spy Eggsy (Egerton) return to stop the evil terror ring known as The Golden Circle with the help of the Kingsmen's American counterparts, the Statesmen.
"Kingsman" should easily take the No. 1 spot this weekend, beating New Line's "It" as well as Warner Bros.' "The Lego Ninjago Movie," which is expected to make a solid $30 million this weekend. "It" earned another whopping $3.9 million on Thursday, and has finally surpassed "The Exorcist" to become the highest grossing horror movie of all time, having earned $236.3 million so far.
"The Lego Ninjago Movie" follows six young aspiring ninjas as they train under Master Wu (Jackie Chan) to protect the land of Ninjago from an invasion by the evil Lord Garmadon (Justin Theroux), father of the ninjas' leader, Lloyd (Dave Franco). Fred Armisen, Olivia Munn and Kumail Nanjiani also star. Charlie Bean, Paul Fisher and Bob Logan are directors.
7 Biggest Fall Box Office Showdowns, Including 'Ninjago' vs 'Kingsman' (Photos)
"Thor: Ragnarok," "Justice League" and "Star Wars" will surely dominate the box office in the remaining months of 2017. But along with those would-be blockbusters are several smaller films competing for moviegoers' attention. Here are the seven head-to-head box office showdowns to look out for this fall.
Sept. 15: “mother!” vs. “American Assassin”: If its trailer and NSFW poster are any indication, Darren Aronofsky’s horror show looks like its going to be as terrifying and unforgiving a movie as one can expect. While critical acclaim could give it a boost, “American Assassin” has more crowd pleasing elements with “Teen Wolf” star Dylan O’Brien in the lead, and a story based on Vince Flynn’s best-selling Mitch Rapp novels.
Sept. 22: "The Lego Ninjago Movie" vs. "Kingsman the Golden Circle": Like its "Lego Movie" predecessors, "Ninjago" should be a big draw for family audiences who haven't had a major film for them since "Despicable Me 3" and "The Emoji Movie." Facing it is the R-rated "Kingsman" sequel, which will aim to turn the cult following its predecessor earned into a strong opening.
Sept. 29:"Flatliners" vs. "American Made": After starring in the critically maligned "Mummy" remake this summer, Tom Cruise will star in "American Made," which tells the true story of an an airline pilot who becomes a drug smuggler and later a DEA informant. Facing it will be Columbia's "Flatliners," a sequel to the 1990 cult hit about experiments that induce near-death experiences.
Oct. 20: "Only the Brave" vs. "Geostorm" vs. "The Snowman" vs. "Boo! 2": A quartet of wild card releases hit theaters in the third weekend of October. The one that has the best shot of a strong opening is "Boo! 2," the latest film in Tyler Perry's popular "Madea" series. The first "Boo!" made $28.5 million in its opening weekend.
Oct. 27: "Jigsaw" vs. "Suburbicon": It was only a matter of time before the "Saw" franchise came back to play another game, but after "It," "mother!" and "Happy Death Day" hit theaters, will audiences come back for a fourth helping from an old franchise on Halloween weekend? Against it is Oscar contender "Suburbicon," which features -- get ready -- George Clooney directing Matt Damon, Julianne Moore and Oscar Isaac from a script co-written by the Coen Brothers.
Nov. 10: "Daddy's Home 2" vs. "Murder on Orient Express" vs. "Thor: Ragnarok": After posting the worst box office performance of his career with "The House," Will Ferrell will try to do better with a sequel to his 2015 collab with Mark Wahlberg. Kenneth Branagh's star-studded adaptation of Agatha Christie's famous murder mystery novel will also release this weekend, but both could fall to "Thor: Ragnarok," which will be in its second weekend.
Dec. 22: Christmas Releases: Let's be real. All of these holiday weekend releases will be fighting for whatever scraps of moviegoers "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" leaves behind. But "Pitch Perfect 3," the final installment in Kay Cannon's hit musical comedy, has a real shot at a solid opening. Other movies in this group include an adaptation of the TV series "The Six Billion Dollar Man" and Oscar contender "Downsizing," which stars Matt Damon as a man who joins a growing group of people who shrink themselves and join miniature communities.
We know "Thor: Ragnarok" will dominate when it opens in November, but here are the most competitive weekends to watch
"Thor: Ragnarok," "Justice League" and "Star Wars" will surely dominate the box office in the remaining months of 2017. But along with those would-be blockbusters are several smaller films competing for moviegoers' attention. Here are the seven head-to-head box office showdowns to look out for this fall.
