Deadline reports that Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them has opened with an impressive $76 million in North America this weekend, a figure which slightly exceeds early $70 million estimages. However, while it may have effortlessly taken the top spot and given Eddie Redmayne, Colin Farrell, and Jon Voight the biggest debuts of their careers, there's some concern that the movie hasn't done well enough to guarantee that there will indeed be an additional four instalments of the franchise.
One rival distribution chief doesn't think Warner Bros. is happy with these numbers, and that a $90 million debut would have been a lot better for a movie which may have cost close to $200 million to make. The fact that a spinoff from a franchise as popular as Harry Potter and failed to beat both Doctor Strange ($85 million) and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone ($90.3 million) isn't particularly good.
However, another source has a different perspective. "It’s solid, but we can’t make any hasty generalizations yet and pronounce it dead. We need to give this one three weeks and see how international fares." Another said, "We need more movies like Fantastic Beasts, it’s hardly a bomb!"
The site points out that their insiders are saying Warner Bros. is very happy, especially as reviews and moviegoers (who have given it an A CinemaScore) have been postive. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will need to reach close to $800 million to guarantee that a sequel will happen though. It currently has $53 million from overseas though, so that's a good start. We'll just have to wait and see where things go from here anyway! Have you guys seen the movie yet? Share your thoughts below.
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