“Dark Phoenix,” the X-Men sequel from Disney and Fox, has earned $5 million in its Thursday box office previews, while “The Secret Life of Pets 2,” which is projected similarly this weekend, earned $2.3 million in its previews from 3,250 screens with showings beginning at 6 p.m.
“Dark Phoenix” is Disney’s first major tentpole release following the acquisition of the Fox slate, and it’s the final film with the current cast of X-Men characters before becoming part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The studio is projecting an opening between $40-50 million for “Dark Phoenix,” with independent trackers saying it could go as high as $55 million in what is expected to be a close race for the top spot against “Secret Life of Pets 2.”
A $55 million opening for “Dark Phoenix” would be just above the series low opening of the previous installment, 2016’s “X-Men: Apocalypse.” That film made $53 million in its opening weekend and grossed $8.2 million in its Thursday night previews, which actually just barely improved upon the $8.1 million preview for “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” despite that film making $110.6 million in its opening. Other comps include “War for the Planet of the Apes,” which made $5 million from previews and grossed $56 million in its opening, and “Shazam!” which made $5.9 million from previews before jumping to a $54 million opening.
Even if “Dark Phoenix” disappoints, however, it’s a blow Disney is more than capable of enduring, as they are hoping that the added slate of Fox films could push their overall gross for the year to the $4 billion mark.
Sophie Turner stars in “Dark Phoenix” as the telekinetic mutant Jean Grey who develops enhanced powers and an evil alter ego known as the Dark Phoenix that threatens to destroy the X-Men and humanity. Simon Kinberg wrote and directed the film that also stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Alexandra Shipp, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Evan Peters and Jessica Chastain.
Universal and Illumination Entertainment’s animated sequel to the 2016 “The Secret Life of Pets” is expected to finish well behind the massive opening of the original film, which made $104.3 million after just a $5.3 million Thursday night. In fact, the original “Secret Life of Pets” places in the top 50 for all time openings at the box office, and it’s incredibly still the record holder for the largest opening of any film that’s not a sequel or based on existing material. And worldwide the first “Pets” film is second only to “Shrek 2” in terms of non-Disney films, grossing $875 million worldwide.
But it’s a solid start all the same for “Pets 2.” Illumination’s last film “Dr. Seuss’s The Grinch” opened to $67.5 million after earning $2.2 million Thursday. And Universal’s “How to Train Your Dragon 3” opened to $55 million after firing up $3 million in its previews. The studio is predicting “Pets 2” to open between $50-60 million, a respectable opening for a film with an $80 million budget. And an opening above $56.4 million would actually put it ahead of the original “Despicable Me” film from 2010.
Patton Oswalt replaces Louis C.K. in the lead role as the dog Max, who now faces a major lifestyle change after his owner gets married and has a child. Harrison Ford and Tiffany Haddish are among the new additions to the voice cast that’s rounded out by Kevin Hart, Eric Stonestreet, Jenny Slate, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Bobby Moynihan, Hannibal Buress, Chris Renaud, Ellie Kemper, Pete Holmes and Nick Kroll. Chris Renaud and Jonathan del Val are the directors.
All 12 'X-Men' Movies Ranked, From Worst to Best (Photos)
The superhero film franchise is still going strong after two decades. TheWrap's film critic Alonso Duralde ranks all the "X-Men" movies and their spinoffs from worst to best.
20th Century Fox
12. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" (2009)
It’s incumbent on prequels to have enough vitality to keep us from noticing that we’re heading to a pre-determined destination, but this listlessly written ordeal -- loaded with terrible effects and horrible misuse of future franchise savior Deadpool -- ranks as the hottest mess of the mutant adventures.
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11. "X-Men: Apocalypse" (2016)
There are many sins we can forgive in a superhero epic, but dullness is not among them. Director Bryan Singer, usually adept at creating these movies, shockingly drops the ball here, with a who-cares world-domination plot from the titular villain (played by an unrecognizable Oscar Isaac) and more characters than he apparently knows how to handle.
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10. "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006)
Brett Ratner has reimagined himself as a successful producer of blockbusters and documentaries of late, and if that means he won’t be directing any more movies like this one, more power to him. Ratner threw out all the characterization from the previous two films and crafted a thud-and-blunder action epic that emphasized cacophony and spectacle over story. It wasn’t enough to kill the franchise, but this one definitely counts as a stain on its reputation.
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9. "Dark Phoenix" (2019)
What would appear to be the series' final entry takes the X-Men saga out with a whimper rather than a bang. Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) absorbs an alien force-blob that juices up her powers beyond her control, but the film is far more interested in CG mayhem than in characters or plotting. The whole movie is stolen by the hair and makeup on Jessica Chastain, who has been made to look eerily like music legend Edgar Winter.
8. "The Wolverine" (2013)
Something of a mixed bag -- we get two powerful and captivating female leads for Hugh Jackman to play against, before the film gets mired in corporate intrigue and Japanese sightseeing -- but it’s a huge improvement over the previous Wolverine solo vehicle. Jackman promises one more of these, and then he’s done, so let’s hope the upward trajectory continues.
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7. "X-Men" (2000)
Here’s where it all began, and a case can be made that the success of this 2000 film, alongside 2002’s “Spider-Man” and 2005’s “Batman Begins,” laid the groundwork for the modern superhero ubiquity. The film cagily presents friends-turned-enemies Magneto and Professor X as the Malcolm X and MLK of mutant liberation, giving this Bryan Singer-directed tale more heft than just dudes in spandex whomping each other.
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6. Deadpool 2 (2018)
Ryan Reynolds retains his commitment to the bit in a sequel that neither betrays the first film's promise, nor does it kick things up a notch. As a joke told a second time, however, it's a pretty fun sequel, thanks to the extension of some beloved bits and the addition of zesty new cast members like Zazie Beetz and Rob Delaney.
5. "Logan" (2017)
It's 2029, and an aging Wolverine and 90-something Professor X are hiding out from the world at large -- until they're called to help a new mutant find her way to safety. On the heels of "Deadpool," this R-rated entry allows for bloodier violence and saltier language, and if the storytelling doesn't find new levels of maturity, "The Wolverine" director James Mangold makes the most of his new freedoms, resulting in a rousingly fun character-capper (or is it?).
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4. "X-Men: First Class" (2011)
British action director Matthew Vaughn (“Layer Cake”) gave the series a much-needed jolt of adrenaline with this prequel, taking us back to the beginning of the story and showing how a young Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Magneto (Michael Fassbender) joined forces before tragically parting ways and pursuing differing philosophies.
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3. "X-Men: Days of Future Past" (2013)
After a lengthy absence, director Bryan Singer returned to the mutants, juggling multiple timelines and characters in a saga wherein Wolverine must return to the groovy Paris of the early 1970s to change history and stop the deadly Sentinels from being created to capture and destroy all mutants. This one’s almost as overcrowded as “Apocalypse,” but at least the characters still get some breathing room.
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2. "Deadpool" (2016)
The overinflated superhero genre has been overdue for a popping, and this breezy action comedy provided the much-needed pin. Making up for the misuse of the character in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” a returning Ryan Reynolds turned the comics’ legendary “Merc with a Mouth” into a human Daffy Duck, bouncing back from every explosion and injury while simultaneously shattering the fourth wall and mocking the franchise in the most R-rated way possible. These movies had it coming.
20th Cenutry Fox
1." X2" (2003)
Still arguably one of the best superhero films ever made, this entry enjoys all the second-time-around benefits of any franchise where the first movie had to lay all the groundwork and tell all the origin stories. Smart and politically provocative, featuring strong performances by actors who have been given real characters to play, and loaded with plenty of satisfying action, “X2” remains the gold standard -- and Singer's best entry -- for this series.
20th Century Fox
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Twenty years after the original ”X-Men“ hit theaters, how does the franchise stack up?
The superhero film franchise is still going strong after two decades. TheWrap's film critic Alonso Duralde ranks all the "X-Men" movies and their spinoffs from worst to best.