Thursday Night Previews: Star Trek’s Previews are in the Stratosphere at $5.5 million

July 22, 2016

Star Trek Beyond

Star Trek Beyond got off to a fast start with $5.5 million during its midnight previews. This is $2 million more than Ghostbusters made last weekend, plus it has better reviews. On the other hand, it is a sequel, so the comparison isn’t perfect. We could compare it to the previous installment in the franchise, but that film opened on a Wednesday. X-Men: Apocalypse earned $8.4 million in its previews, but that film earned weaker reviews and is a comic book movie, which tend to be more front-loaded. I was a little more bullish than most with my prediction, but this result make me feel a lot better.

Lights Out earned $1.8 million during its previews. There have been a few horror / thrillers to come out this summer, the most recent being The Shallows, which earned $1.3 million during its previews. The films earned identical reviews, so could earn similar openings. Unless something strange happens, it should match our $16 million prediction nearly perfectly.

On the other hand, Ice Age: Collision Course could be in trouble, as it only managed $850,000. Granted, family films rarely do break-out business during midnight previews, but this film was playing since 5 pm last night. It did top The Angry Birds Movie, barely, but it is also part of a long-running franchise and the reviews are awful, so it likely won’t have the same legs. I’m still sticking with $35 million over the weekend, but I think I will have to downgrade that tomorrow when Friday’s estimate comes in.

- Star Trek Beyond Comparisons
- Ice Age: Collision Course Comparisons
- Lights Out Comparisons

Filed under: Midnight Previews, Ghostbusters, The Angry Birds Movie, X-Men: Apocalypse, Ice Age: Collision Course, Lights Out, Star Trek Beyond, The Shallows, Star Trek, Ice Age