Huge Memorial Day Box Office Success for Mission: Impossible and Lilo & Stitch
weekend's movie spectacle is kicking some serious butt in theaters with Hollywood heavyweights, Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning and Lilo & Stitch, raking in the dough!
According to the industry gurus at Variety, these two flicks smashed previous Memorial Day holiday records, grossing a whopping $341.7 million worldwide. Lilo, with its warm heart and colorful appeal, has left the charismatic Maverick of Top Gun: Maverick far behind, earning an impressive domestic take of $145.5 million. Although it falls a tad behind Black Panther's Presidents Day 2018 earnings of $242 million, it's holding its own as the second-best holiday weekend start.
Lilo has achieved one of Disney's most impressive live-action remake debuts, just edging out 2019's The Lion King and 2017's Beauty & the Beast. By the end of the 4-day weekend, it's expected to earn $183 million, although it's not quite hitting the phenomenal $191 million and $174 million tallies of its aforementioned predecessors.
Meanwhile, Final Reckoning opened with a roar, earning approximately $353 million worldwide. With a week's head start in Australia, South Korea, and other territories, its international audience contributed a hefty $127 million to that impressive sum. Its domestic take is projected to hit $77 million by the weekend's end, smashing the records for the Mission: Impossible series. Both films have been met with critical and audience accolades, leveraging their sentimental appeal: Lilo based on the beloved 23-year-old classic, and Reckoning potentially marking the end of an era for Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt.
As moviegoers flock to theaters, holdover films like Final Destination Bloodlines, Sinners, and Thunderbolts are also enjoying some well-deserved attention. It's been over a decade since cinemas saw such an overwhelming influx of audiences during Memorial Day, and a significant improvement from 2024's anemic showings of Furiosa and Garfield.
As we move towards June, we can look forward to hotly anticipated releases like Ballerina, How to Train Your Dragon, and the much-anticipated 28 Years Later. July brings Superman and Fantastic Four to the big screen. Until then, let us hear your thoughts on Mission: Impossible and Lilo & Stitch in the comments below!
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- Gizmodo reporters should share their thoughts on the impressive box-office success of both Lilo & Stitch and Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning, as they smashed previous Memorial Day holiday records this weekend.
- In the realm of movies-and-tv entertainment, fans are eagerly awaiting the release of upcoming movies like Ballerina, How to Train Your Dragon, and 28 Years Later, which will be hitting theaters in June, while also looking forward to Superman and Fantastic Four in July.
- Io9 news enthusiasts can stay informed on the latest updates about Marvel, Star Wars, Star Trek, the DC Universe on both silver screen and small screen, as well as future developments for Doctor Who.
