The return of Godzilla, Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore were unable to slow down the juggernaut X-Men: Days of Future Past at the box office over Memorial Day weekend. The seventh X-Men film released is one of the best reviewed and will become the biggest franchise earner when all is said and done.
After topping $90 million through Sunday without the benefit of IMAX or IMAX 3D ticket surcharges, director Bryan Singer’s X-Men: Days of Future Past added another estimated $19.6 million on Monday to reach $111 million domestically through its first four days of release. That is $12 million shy of what X-Men: The Last Stand earned during the same weekend, but expect Days of Future Past to stick around a lot longer than the Brett Ratner entry did.
Oveseas, X-Men: Days of Future Past has already earned $191 million through four days, bringing its worldwide total to $302 million in under a week. It should have no trouble catching the $459 million The Last Stand earned worldwide to become the highest grossing X-Men film to date. The eighth film in the series, X-Men: Apocalypse, was teased in the post-credits scene and arrives in theaters on May 27, 2016.
Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore couldn’t rekindle their Wedding Singer and 50 First Dates magic as Blended bombed with only $18.2 million through its first four days of release. With an “A-” CinemaScore, Blended could stick around awhile and rise from its miserable debut to earn north of $40 million.
Godzilla was a surefire bet to get hammered by X-Men: Days of Future Past and boy did it. The reimagining of the iconic beast earned $31.1 million through Sunday and $39.4 million through Monday. The 67 percent drop does not bode well for Godzilla’s staying power, especially with more competition in the form of Maleficent only a few days away.
