After a two year delay due to the pandemic, Illumination/Universal’s Minions: The Rise of Gru, the fifth movie in the Despicable Me/Minions universe, arrives looking to lead the Independence Day domestic box office with $70M-$80M over 4-days, and another $70M abroad for a potential $150M global launch.
There are no other major studio wide entries over July 4th weekend.Through four movies comprised of three Despicable Mes and a Minions spinoff, the Illumination franchise has chalked up $3.7 billion worldwide.Should Minions: The Rise of Gru come in under its U.S./Canada projections, it’s strictly due to franchise fatigue.
There have been few animated family movies during the pandemic, so comps are few. Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 with a $72.1M opening is still the ideal comparison for any major studio’s animated fare.
Sonic 2 received an offshore opening ahead of U.S./Canada vs. the global day and date here for Minions: The Rise of Gru. The recent faltering of Lightyear, with an $86M global debut and $50.5M domestic start, boiled down to Toy Story fans’ upset with the spinoff; not Covid fears.
Read more on deadline.com