'Neighbors 2' flies past 'Angry Birds,' 'Nice Guys' with $1.7 million on Thursday night
"Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising" has launched impressively with $1.67 million in at 2,627 theaters in Thursday night preview screenings in the U.S. while "The Angry Birds Movie" flew to $800,000 at 2,804 locations and "The Nice Guys" drew $700,000.
The films are launching against Marvel/Disney's third weekend of "Captain America: Civil War." Each of the trio should top $30 million, making the frame one of the most competitive of the year with "Angry Birds" appearing to have the initial edge with about $38 million at 3,932 sites.
Warner Bros.' launch of Russell Crowe-Ryan Gosling's "The Nice Guys" at 2,865 screens is pegged to finish at around $10 million.
"Captain America" passed $310 million domestic milestone on Wednesday, its 13th day of release. The tentpole declined 59% from its opening for a $72.6 million second weekend — the eighth-best of all time — so a similar decline in its third weekend would leave it around $30 million, while a 50% decline would equate to $36 million.
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Universal is releasing "Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising" in 3,389 theaters with Seth Rogen, Zac Efron and Rose Byrne returning. Chloë Grace Moretz joins as a reckless leader of an upstart sorority next door to the Rogen-Byrne household.
The original "Neighbors" did $2.5 mil on its Thursday night previews.
The original "Neighbors" opened with $49 million in the U.S. on its way to $150 million domestically, so an opening in the $33 million to $35 million range appears to be realistic.
The film, which carries a $35 million price tag, kicked off internationally on May 5 and has grossed over $23 million from 34 territories.
"Angry Birds" carries a $73 million budget with Rovio Animation fully financing and opens at 3,932 locations.
The movie, directed by Fergal Reilly and Clay Kaytis, is set on an island populated entirely by happy, flightless birds – except for Red (voiced by Jason Sudeikis), speedy Chuck (Josh Gad) and Bomb (Danny McBride). When the island is visited by mysterious green piggies, it's up to the trio to figure out what the pigs are up to.
"The Nice Guys," directed by Shane Black from a script he co-wrote with Anthony Bagarozzi, is set in 1977 Los Angeles with Gosling playing a private eye and Crowe as a hired enforcer getting to the bottom of a murderous conspiracy involving porn and automakers. The film premiered Monday at the Cannes Film Festival with strong support from critics with a current 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
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