The box office got slimed. “Ghostbusters” did well during its opening weekend, earning a respectable $46 million, when most box-office experts had it earning in the $38-$40 million range.
This is the highest opening weekend for the duo of Melissa McCarthy and Paul Feig. 2015’s “Spy” earned just over $28 million during its opening weekend, with 2013’s “The Heat” opening at $39 million. McCarthy’s star-making turn in “Bridesmaids” came in with a $26 million opening weekend in 2011, but at a $32 million budget, was much cheaper to make.
The “Ghostbusters” opening take exceeded a number of other summer films’ openers, some with even higher budgets, like “The Legend of Tarzan,” “Independence Day: Resurgence,” Alice Through the Looking Glass,” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.” At this point, there’s nowhere for the “Ghostbusters” box office to go but up.
With this performance, there’s little doubt that Sony will put out a sequel with the successful all-female cast of Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones. As Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution at Sony told TheWrap, “I expect ‘Ghostbusters’ to become an important brand and franchise. While nothing has been officially announced yet, there’s no doubt in my mind it will happen.”
“Finding Dory” is now the highest grossing Pixar film of all time, earning $445 million (so far!). With that number, the fishy tale, starring Ellen DeGeneres, is now the highest-grossing film of 2016, beating out hits like “Captain America: Civil War” and this weekend’s #2, “The Secret Life of Pets.” “Finding Dory” is also the highest-grossing animated film ever in North America, dethroning “Shrek 2,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. Though it will have to work much harder to reach the highest-grossing animated film worldwide, the billion plus “Frozen.”