'Fantastic Beasts' easily wins the weekend box office
The "Harry Potter" spin-off movie "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" took in an estimated $75 million at the domestic box office in its opening weekend, according to pro.boxoffice.com.
An impressive figure for the first of five movies that will explore Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and his adventures while collecting fantastic beasts.
Though the movie had a smaller opening weekend than any of the "Harry Potter" movies — Warner Bros. was not expecting it to make that kind of money — it tied the ninth best domestic opening weekend of 2016, matching "Zootopia" ($75 million).
Though it can be argued that the movie being released in over 4,000 screens domestically (with a reported production budget north of $180 million and a marketing budget of $150 million) and only making $75 million isn't necessarily a win, Warner Bros. is looking at the global game with "Fantastic Beasts." Bringing in $143 million internationally is likely the figure that WB is reassured about the film's staying power.
As expected, "Fantastic Beasts" swallowed up the market, as new releases and holdovers all underperformed over the weekend. "Doctor Strange" came in second place with $17.6 million; "Trolls" came in third with $17.5 million.
Related: See the original "Harry Potter" stars today:
NOW WATCH: 2 millennials watched the original 'Star Wars' for the first time
See Also:
The 'Harry Potter' spin-off 'Fantastic Beasts' is already making huge money
Here's everything you need to know about Johnny Depp in the 'Fantastic Beasts' movies
SEE ALSO: 'Game of Thrones' star Emilia Clarke is joining the Han Solo movie
