- Disney’s “The Lion King” remake earned $78.5 million on Friday, and could make up to $200 million this weekend despite poor reviews.
- The movie has a 55% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, but an A on Cinemascore.
- Disney currently holds the top five movies at the global and domestic box offices.
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Disney’s “The Lion King” is laughing in the face of poor reviews, and is on its way to a huge weekend at the box office.
The movie, a remake of the 1994 animated classic, earned $78.5 million on Friday and could make up to $200 million over its opening weekend in the US. It earned $23 million in Thursday previews, the most of any Disney remake so far.
READ MORE: ‘The Lion King’ remake is being trashed by critics, but there are big signs it will be a smash hit for Disney at the box office
“The Lion King” is not only on its way to the second-biggest domestic opening of the year so far, behind only “Avengers: Endgame,” but it’s also expected to have the biggest July opening weekend ever (before adjusting for inflation). The previous record-holder, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2,” earned $169 million in 2011.
The movie has already made $270.5 million globally as of Friday, according to Boxoffice.com.
3 PHOTOSBlue Ivy Carter at The Lion King premiereSee GalleryBlue Ivy Carter at The Lion King premiere
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JULY 09: (EDITORS NOTE: Retransmission with alternate crop.) Blue Ivy Carter (L) and Beyonce Knowles-Carter attend the World Premiere of Disney’s “THE LION KING” at the Dolby Theatre on July 09, 2019 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JULY 09: (L-R) Blue Ivy Carter and Beyoncé attends the premiere of Disney’s “The Lion King” at Dolby Theatre on July 09, 2019 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Beyonce, a cast member in “The Lion King,” poses with her daughter Blue Ivy at the premiere of the film at the El Capitan Theatre, Tuesday, July 9, 2019, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)Up Next
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Audiences obviously love the movie more than critics. It has an A grade on Cinemascore, which polls audiences on a movie’s opening night, while only having a 55% critic score on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.
Disney has been immune to critical poundings this year, though. “Aladdin,” another remake of an animated classic, has made $967 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo, and has a 56% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Disney currently holds the top five 2019 releases at both the domestic and global box offices (that includes “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” which was distributed by Sony but coproduced by Disney’s Marvel Studios). “The Lion King” will surely make it six.
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See Also:
- ‘The Lion King’ is on track to beat Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ remake at the box office and snag a record
- ‘The Lion King’ remake is projected to far outpace the original at the box office in its opening weekend, but will face a tougher battle after
- ‘The Lion King’ remake is being trashed by critics, but there are big signs it will be a smash hit for Disney at the box office
SEE ALSO: ‘The Lion King’ is on track to beat Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ remake at the box office and snag a record
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