Gru and his mischievous furry henchmen kicked off the long July 4th holiday weekend by making their U.S. debut in theaters on Wednesday. Performing well amid patriotic fervor, Illumination and Universal’s tentpole Despicable Me 4 earned $27 million on its opening day and went on to gross $120 million at the domestic box office over the five-day holiday weekend, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The animated action comedy fourthquel returns, mirroring the highest-grossing standards the Despicable Me/Minions franchise has ever had.
With a stellar ‘A’ CinemaScore, the Steve Carell starrer is competing with Pixar and Disney’s record-breaking blockbuster Inside Out 2, Paramount’s A Quiet Place: Day One, Sony’s Bad Boys: Ride or Die and Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter One.
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Other films struggling for success at the US box office
Despite struggling at the domestic box office, both Despicable Me 4 and Inside Out 2 have returned to theaters in strong numbers with their family thrillers.
The heartwarming animated Pixar film scored the biggest domestic theatrical debut of 2024 so far, earning more than $154.2 million in its opening weekend. Despite stiff competition launched by its Illumination rival, Inside Out 2 is on track to gross $46 million or more during the five-day holiday period. It is also expected to surpass $500 million in North America, becoming the third animated film to achieve this milestone.
Meanwhile, horror science-fiction prequel A Quiet Place: Day One, starring Joseph Quinn and Lupita Nyong’o, is also hoping for a box office haul of $31 million in five days.
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Elsewhere, the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence film Bad Boys: Ride or Die is in fourth place and will end its five-day run on Sunday with a North American gross of over $175 million.
Kevin Costner’s Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter One will rank in the top 5 as expected, but has failed to find love from audiences. With its gloomy box office numbers, the period Western takes a completely different path from the smooth and lovely storylines chosen by Despicable Me 4 and Inside Out. The film will likely close its second weekend with gloomy numbers, barely hitting the $22 million mark.
