Minions will definitely win the weekend, the only drama now is can it open above Despicable Me 2? It has lesser reviews than both of the Despicable predecessors and I think it’s really hurt by a lack of Steve Carell. Still, that shouldn’t matter much this weekend as it’s blazing hot outside, the kids are off school, and Minions at least looks super cute. $90 million is my call, slightly above the sequel’s $83 million.
The Gallows is a July horror that won’t make much of a splash, but will make a tidy profit based on the usual horror-slasher budget profile. I only have this coming in at $12.7 million, my comparison is Deliver Us From Evil if you’re playing along at home. That one opened at $9.7 million in July, I’ve bumped The Gallows because it looks slightly better.
Self/less has an extremely stupid title and poor reviews. This is a Focus Features smallball (low budget) attempt that I haven’t seen much marketing around. I’ve got it pegged around $10 million due to theater counts and lack of awareness.
Inside Out continues to be nicely positioned, though clearly they’d prefer not to be facing Minions this weekend. I think another 40 percent drop is in order, down to $17.4 million. It looks as though $300 million+ is likely domestically, which is a nice result, 3rd overall behind Finding Nemo and Toy Story 3.
Now it’s your turn, predictions away!
SIDE NOTE: Some of the theater numbers below are estimates. We’ll have the actual counts in Sunday’s wrap-up article.
