Box Office: Aladdin taking flight with $105 million in North America
DISNEY’S live-action Aladdin is flying high with an estimated $105 million in North America during the four-day Memorial Day holiday weekend.
It’s the sixth-highest Memorial Day weekend total ever, topping the 2011 mark of $103.4 million for The Hangover Part II. The top total came in 2007, when Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End took in $139 million in its first four days.
Aladdin is also dominating moviegoing internationally with $121 million in 56 markets.
The live-action re-telling of the 1992 animated film has outperformed Disney’s pre-opening domestic projections, which were in the $75 million to $85 million range, taking in $86.1 million in its first three days.
The film’s animated version took in $502 million worldwide.
The 2019 version is directed by Guy Ritchie and stars Mena Massoud as Aladdin, Will Smith as the Genie, Naomi Scott as Jasmine and Marwan Kenzari as Jafar.
Comscore’s PostTrak general audience survey found that 67% of patrons said they would “definitely recommend” the film to their friends.
Notably, 39% said their affection for the original was their primary reason for seeing the film, a high percentage that reflects moviegoers’ love for the Aladdin brand and the characters in the film.
“A very strong 22% said they would see the film again in theatres — much higher than the norm of 14%,” noted Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore’s senior media analyst.
Comscore estimated that total domestic business for the four-day weekend was $226 million. That was about $1.8 million shy of the total for the same frame last year, when Solo: A Star Wars Story launched with $103 million. The top Memorial Day weekend took place in 2013 when “Fast and Furious 6” launched and North American moviegoing totaled $314 million for the four days.
“A very solid Memorial Day weekend was led by the bigger-than-expected performance of Disney’s Aladdin conjured up huge numbers of moviegoers looking for the perfect family-friendly treat over the extended holiday weekend,” he said.
Aladdin is the third biggest launch of 2019, following the record-setting $357 million for Avengers: Endgame and $153 million for Captain Marvel. — Reuters
