Fox’s X-Men: Days of Future Past set the tone for this holiday weekend at the box office by putting up big numbers from Thursday night showings.
Opening at roughly 2,900 locations last night at 10pm, X-Men: Days of Future Past from director Bryan Singer earned $8.1 million for a fast start out of the gate. That’s less than the $10.2 million that Captain America: The Winter Soldier produced during its Thursday night showings, but still a great sign for Fox headed into Memorial day weekend.
The earnings for X-Men: Days of Future Past will be hindered versus last weekend’s champ Godzilla due to no IMAX exposure and the increased ticket prices the larger screens — especially when equipped with 3D — bring with it. However, current box office estimates suggest the seventh X-Men film should still cross $100 million through Sunday.
Keep in mind that Gozilla chewed up and spit out its estimates last weekend as hype built into its release. The same could happen this weekend as reviews for X-Men: Days of Future Past have been incredibly positive thus far, including an unusually high 93% approval rating at Rotten Tomatoes. I would expect CinemaScore ratings this weekend to be no less than an “A,” and positive word of mouth to drive repeat viewers and moviegoers that originally did not intend to see the movie at cinemas.
If you go see X-Men: Days of Future Past this weekend, be sure to stick around through the end-credits for an extra scene that is not to be missed.
