We’re only a few days into summer, but this year has been record-breaking for movie makers. The amount of people going to cinemas has been on the decline, as 2017 was one of the lowest years for ticket sales in the past two decades. But that isn’t stopping huge hit releases to rake in more money than expected. This year, sequels are the summer smash-hits: Deadpool 2, Incredibles 2, and most recently, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom have continued to dominate the top spots. Let’s break down why these movies matter so much.
Starting with Deadpool 2, the movie just passed the $300 million mark this past weekend for domestic sales. While not living up to the original’s legacy, it is the 5th R-Rated movie to ever cross the $300 million threshold. The only other four to do so include The Passion of the Christ, the original Deadpool movie, American Sniper, and 2017’s remastering of the horror staple by Stephen King: It.
Next, we’ll dash over to Incredibles 2, which beat out Finding Dory as the highest grossing domestic opening weekend for an animated film. It was estimated that the superhero sequel garnered $180 million in its first weekend, which is $40 million over projected sales and $45 million over the previous record holder. The length between movie releases may have been a genius marketing strategy on Disney-Pixar’s end, as it ramped up the hype.
Finally, we’ll stomp to the beat of the sequel to the reboot of the Jurassic Park franchise. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdon has a Thursday night opening of over $15 million, raked in over $150 million in its first weekend domestically, and has already made over $700 million worldwide. Just like Deadpool 2, the sequel fell short of the original movie’s release, but still topped expected domestic gross.
So why are box office stats so fascinating to track? For me, it’s the thrill of seeing if high-budget movies will live up to the expectations or if they will crash and burn under immense pressure. The box office keeps us on our toes, because we, the audience, decide if a movie is a success or a bust. Other movies we have to look forward to for the summer are more sequels like Ant Man and the Wasp, Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again, and a new Mission Impossible movie.
