EXCLUSIVE: Universal‘s live action take of DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon is eyeing around $8M-$9M in previews, which not only includes tonight’s monies but those from early fan access screenings. As we always say, these are industry estimates, so they could fluctuate by the time Universal reports in the morning. The studio didn’t return request for comment on what we were spotting.
While early week projections were $65M-$75M, exhibition has been pushing this one in hopes they can wrangle a $100M opening. We could use more of those this summer post Memorial Day weekend.
The audience score on Rotten Tomatoes for this Dean DeBlois directed movie (he did the original animated trilogy) is an epic 99% with critics at 77% certified fresh (that’s a little higher than Lilo & Stitch‘s 72% fresh; that pic’s audience score settling at 93%). Previews began today at 2PM.
How to Train Your Dragon‘s preview money isn’t far from Frozen 2‘s ($8.5M, $130.2M opening), but it’s below Lilo & Stitch‘s $14.5M ($146M opening). It’s also north of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts ($7.6M, $61M opening).
Hands down, How to Trian Your Dragon‘s early money is ahead of the third animated pic, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World ($3M previews, $55M opening) and it’s also ahead of How to Train Your Dragon 2‘s $2M in cash (that sequel released by 20th Century Fox when DWA had their distribution deal there) which turned into a $49.4M 3-day opening.
The How to Train Your Dragon trilogy of movies have grossed close to $1.7 billion at the global box office.
We’ll have more updates in the AM.
