Jurassic World devours box office

Owen (Chris Pratt) attempts keep the raptors at bay in Jurassic World. It broke all box-office records last weekend and made about $209 million.
Owen (Chris Pratt) attempts keep the raptors at bay in Jurassic World. It broke all box-office records last weekend and made about $209 million.

LOS ANGELES -- Who says dinosaurs don't still rule the Earth?

Universal's Jurassic World, about genetically engineered dinosaurs that attack humans on a remote island tourist resort, gobbled up the box office record books over the weekend in collecting about $209 million, the largest domestic opening in history.

The reboot of Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park franchise stunned Hollywood as it surpassed even the most generous projections. Heading into the weekend, Universal had predicted an opening of about $100 million for U.S. and Canadian theaters, and other industry experts had speculated that the film might fall in the $120 million to $150 million range.

Instead, Jurassic World became the second film to break the $200 million barrier in its first weekend. Jurassic World stomped past Avengers: Age of Ultron, which opened in May at $191.3 million, according to Rentrak.

Directed by Colin Trevorrow and starring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, Jurassic World received positive-to-mixed reviews from critics but scored an A from audience polling firm CinemaScore.

The film's success propels Trevorrow, who had only the low-budget Safety Not Guaranteed on his feature resume, to the top ranks of directors, while solidifying the star appeal of Pratt after last year's hits Guardians of the Galaxy and The Lego Movie.

"Does the word 'wow' sum it up?" said Nick Carpou, president of domestic distribution for Universal. "It's extraordinary. ... Colin always had this clarity about what this film should be."

"The turnout for Jurassic World could mark a turnaround for what has been a disappointing summer film season," said senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian of Rentrak. "The dinosaur flick may have benefited from pent-up demand after the collective shrug moviegoers gave Tomorrowland, a disappointment when Disney released it over the Memorial Day weekend last month."

"There have been three down weekends, including Memorial Day," Dergarabedian said. "It really is about momentum. There's a lot of big films coming out in June and July, and a lot of ground can be made up if those films deliver.

"Jurassic World not only delivered, it over-delivered. There's no better salve for a struggling box office than a movie that opens with a 2 at the front."

The appetite for Jurassic World also was massive overseas. The film collected $307.2 million in 66 territories, beating the previous record holder, Universal's Furious 7, which opened with $250.4 million. (The record comes with an asterisk, however: Some studios choose to stagger release dates worldwide, so a film such as Avengers: Age of Ultron, which has made more than $910 million abroad, will see its ticket sales spread over time versus spiked in a single weekend.)

Insiders can start speculating whether Disney and Pixar's animated Inside Out, which opens today, will slow Jurassic World's momentum.

Among other films performing admirably: The previous weekend's top movie, the R-rated comedy Spy starring Melissa McCarthy and Jason Statham, dropped a respectable 45 percent to land in second place with about $16 million. It has made $56.6 million to date.

The Warner Bros. earthquake thriller San Andreas continued to shake up audiences, coming in third with about $11 million and raising its domestic total to about $119 million.

Fourth place went to Insidious Chapter 3, which brought in $7.3 million in its second weekend. The PG-rated horror film has collected $37.4 million to date.

Rounding out the top five was Pitch Perfect 2, which added about $6.4 million for a $171 million total.

In specialty release, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, which won the grand jury and audience awards at the Sundance Film Festival, opened in six markets and 15 theaters to a respectable $210,000. Its three-day per-screen average of $14,000 was second only to that of Jurassic World.

Fox Searchlight, which is marketing and distributing the film, plans to roll out the picture in 10 additional markets this weekend and expand it in cities where it has already opened.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Monday by Rentrak:

  1. Jurassic World, Universal, $208,806,270, 4,274 locations, $48,855 average, $208,806,270, one week.

  2. Spy, 20th Century Fox, $15,613,686, 3,715 locations, $4,203 average, $56,550,930, two weeks.

  3. San Andreas, Warner Bros., $10,812,387, 3,535 locations, $3,059 average, $119,123,301, three weeks.

  4. Insidious: Chapter 3, Focus Features, $7,311,963, 3,014 locations, $2,426 average, $37,382,544, two weeks.

  5. Pitch Perfect 2, Universal, $6,398,030, 2,677 locations, $2,390 average, $171,113,715, five weeks.

  6. Entourage, Warner Bros., $4,186,984, 3,108 locations, $1,347 average, $25,717,456, two weeks.

  7. Mad Max: Fury Road, Warner Bros., $4,065,967, 2,234 locations, $1,820 average, $138,543,794, five weeks.

  8. Avengers: Age of Ultron, Disney, $3,675,057, 2,156 locations, $1,705 average, $444,777,275, seven weeks.

  9. Tomorrowland, Disney, $3,492,475, 2,540 locations, $1,375 average, $83,682,888, four weeks.

  10. Love & Mercy, Roadside Attractions, $1,672,325, 573 locations, $2,919 average, $4,680,936, two weeks.

  11. Aloha, Columbia, $994,396, 1,423 locations, $699 average, $18,994,519, three weeks.

  12. I'll See You in My Dreams, Bleecker Street, $809,391, 246 locations, $3,290 average, $2,959,561, five weeks.

  13. Home, 20th Century Fox, $724,112, 584 locations, $1,240 average, $173,252,399, 12 weeks.

  14. Poltergeist, 20th Century Fox, $689,247, 1,069 locations, $645 average, $46,118,192, four weeks.

  15. Furious 7, Universal, $605,115, 357 locations, $1,695 average, $350,827,635, 11 weeks.

  16. Dil Dhadakne Do, Eros Entertainment, $560,027, 238 locations, $2,353 average, $2,312,974, two weeks.

  17. Far From the Madding Crowd, Fox Searchlight, $431,934, 366 locations, $1,180 average, $10,749,612, seven weeks.

  18. Cinderella, Disney, $261,863, 270 locations, $970 average, $199,280,075, 14 weeks.

  19. Ex Machina, A24 Films, $205,970, 194 locations, $1,062 average, $24,698,885, 10 weeks.

  20. Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2, Columbia, $203,336, 234 locations, $869 average, $68,806,665, nine weeks.

MovieStyle on 06/19/2015

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