‘Jurassic World Rebirth’ is a major treat: $318M

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Bechir Sylvain, left, Jonathan Bailey and Scarlett Johansson in a scene from “ Jurassic World: Rebirth.” Universal Pictures, Amblin Entertainment via AP

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By Lindsey Bahr

The Associated Press

Dinosaur fatigue may be a theme in “Jurassic World Rebirth,” but moviegoing audiences don’t seem to have that reservation. The newest installment in the “Jurassic World” franchise ruled the Fourth of July holiday box office with a global, five-day launch of $318.3 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Universal Pictures release, directed by Gareth Edwards, opened on Wednesday and earned $147.3 million in its first five days in 4,308 North American theaters. An estimated $91.5 million of that comes from the traditional “three day” weekend, which includes the Friday holiday, Saturday and projected Sunday ticket sales.

Internationally, it opened in 82 markets including China, adding $171 million to the opening total. According to the studio, $41.5 million of that came from China alone, where it played on 65,000 screens, 760 of which were IMAX. It’s the country’s biggest MPA (Motion Picture Association) opening of the year.

“It’s just a tremendous result,” said Jim Orr, who oversees domestic distribution for Universal. “‘Jurassic World Rebirth is exactly what audiences crave during the summer: a very big, fun, extraordinarily well-done adventure.”

“Jurassic World” was missing from IMAX screens domestically (due to a commitment to continue showing “F1”), but it thrived on the premium large format screens where it played. One of those options was Dolby Cinema, where it made nearly $8 million from only 167 screens in five days.

No major new films dared go up against the dinosaurs, who left last week’s champion, the Brad Pitt racing movie “F1,” in the dust. “F1” fell a modest 54% in its second weekend with $26.1 million, helping bring its domestic total to $109.5 million. It continues to play on IMAX screens with accounted for $7.6 million of the North American weekend ticket sales.

Third place went to Universal’s live-action “How to Train Your Dragon,” which earned $11 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its domestic total to $224 million. Disney and Pixar’s “Elio” landed in fourth place with $5.7 million. Globally, “Elio” has just crossed $96 million in three weekends. “28 Years Later” rounded out the top five with $4.6 million.

A 41-year-old movie also made the domestic top 10: The re-release of Rob Reiner’s 1984 film “This is Spinal Tap.”