It's another big weekend for new releases, but none of them will quite manage to dethrone How to Train Your Dragon. According to Deadline, 28 Years Later earned $14 million at the North American box office on Friday for an expected $28 million - $30 million opening weekend.
That's a decent result, and one that places it in front of 2022's Scream and last year's Longlegs. However, with the live-action How to Train Your Dragon still proving a big draw for audiences, 28 Years Later won't top its expected $35.2 million haul.
Not helping Danny Boyle's long-awaited 28 Days Later follow-up is a B CinemaScore. That's on par with the likes of Abigail, M3GAN, and Smile 2, but below this year's breakout horror hit, Sinners.
Why the lower-than-expected score after receiving 90% on Rotten Tomatoes (its audience score is 67%)? It may have something to do with that divisive, controversial ending.
The pressure is on 28 Years Later to deliver. 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple has already been shot by The Marvels helmer Nia DaCosta, but Boyle's planned third instalment revolving around Cillian Murphy's Jim hasn't been greenlit.
Pixar's latest, Elio, has an A CinemaScore. That's impressive, as it's the same as classics like Toy Story, A Bug's Life, and Ratatouille. Unfortunately, with an expected $22 million - $24 million after a $9 million Friday, it's expected to be Pixar's lowest opening to date.
Clearly, How to Train Your Dragon is a bigger priority for families. Whether F1: The Movie will open at #1 next weekend remains to be seen, though it seems likely. From there, Jurassic World Rebirth will dominate until Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Steps come along.
In 28 Years Later, it's been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, and now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway.
When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.
28 Years Later arrives in theaters on June 20, 2025.