Advertisement
UK markets closed
  • FTSE 100

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • FTSE 250

    19,884.73
    +74.07 (+0.37%)
     
  • AIM

    743.26
    +1.15 (+0.15%)
     
  • GBP/EUR

    1.1688
    -0.0005 (-0.05%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2612
    -0.0010 (-0.08%)
     
  • Bitcoin GBP

    55,691.18
    -275.70 (-0.49%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,254.35
    +5.86 (+0.11%)
     
  • DOW

    39,807.37
    +47.29 (+0.12%)
     
  • CRUDE OIL

    83.11
    -0.06 (-0.07%)
     
  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,254.80
    +16.40 (+0.73%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    40,369.44
    +201.37 (+0.50%)
     
  • HANG SENG

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • DAX

    18,492.49
    +15.40 (+0.08%)
     
  • CAC 40

    8,205.81
    +1.00 (+0.01%)
     

The new 'X-Men' is already crushing the box-office competition

x men apocalypse cerebro
x men apocalypse cerebro

Alan Markfield/20th Century Fox

With a strong $8.2 million in its Thursday preview screenings, "X-Men: Apocalypse" is looking to have a great Memorial Day weekend opening at the box office, even though critics have been split on the latest film in the franchise.

The ninth "X-Men" film, which brings stars like Jennifer Lawrence and Michael Fassbender back to their mutant roles matched against new foes played by Oscar Isaac and Olivia Munn, has a 47% rating on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. But the blockbuster is projected to make about $85 million over the long weekend, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

ADVERTISEMENT

Though "Apocalypse" is on par with the Thursday earning of the most recent X-Men movie, "Days of Future Past" ($8.1 million), Fox is gun-shy to predict a $100 million opening for its latest X-Men flick ("Future Past" opened at over $110 million when it debuted in the US on Memorial Day weekend of 2014).

A big reason for this hesitancy could be the polarizing nature of "Apocalypse." But general audiences are very excited to see the movie, as its preorder sales are close to those of "Future Past," according to Fandango.

alice through looking glass 2 final
alice through looking glass 2 final

Alan Markfield/20th Century FoxOne thing we know: This holiday weekend, a Disney movie will not top the US box office.

Though the studio has been dominating 2016, its latest release, "Alice Through the Looking Glass," looks to be a dud. The movie has a meager 27% on Rotten Tomatoes, and it took in $1.5 million on Thursday for a weekend projection of about $60 million, according to Deadline.

This is just a minor speed bump for Disney, as its titles on deck (particularly "Finding Dory," opening June 17) will put the company right back in the driver's seat.

This Memorial Day weekend will certainly be a better one for Hollywood than last year, when George Clooney's "Tomorrowland" topped the 2015 holiday with a soft $42.7 million.

NOW WATCH: We did a blind taste test of popular hot sauces — here are the best ones

See Also: