Skip to main content

Zootopia expected to usurp Deadpool’s box office throne this weekend

weekend box office zootopia divergent star wars fox
Disney
Deadpool has a dangerous challenge to face shortly: a group of adorable talking animals. Disney’s Zootopia opens at the box office this weekend and the animated film is expected to bring in over $60 million, according to Variety.

While Deadpool has managed to hold onto the No. 1 spot for three straight weeks, Zootopia looks poised to win the weekend. Not only is the film newer, Zootopia appeals to a much broader audience, given that the Ryan Reynolds-starring action movie received an R-rating. The Disney flick, which opened overseas three weeks ago, has received a positive response so far, bringing in $81.4 million at the international box office, according to Box Office Mojo data (at the time of publishing).

Recommended Videos

Zootopia centers on a rabbit, Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin), who is trying to make a name for herself as a cop in a big city populated by anthropomorphic animals.  Judy is up against multiple problems, from her boss, Police Chief Bogo (voiced by Idris Elba), to a sly fox named Nick Wilde (voiced by Jason Bateman). The film is set to open in traditional theaters, as well as in IMAX, premium large format, and 3D.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Deadpool will also be challenged by Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, starring Tina Fey; London Has Fallen, starring Gerard Butler; and, in select theaters in Los Angeles and New York, Knight of Cups, starring Christian Bale. Academy Award winner Spotlight is also expanding into more theaters, going from 685 locations to 1,212.

It’s not all bad news for Deadpool. The superhero flick is expected to soon become the highest-grossing R-rated film in domestic box office history. Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ currently holds the record with $370.78 million, but Deadpool is closing in fast with $290.44 million since its February 12 opening, according to Box Office Mojo (at the time of publishing).

Zootopia hits theaters on March 4.

[amz_native_shopping asins=”B00FTIU98G,B00HCRB4EA,B00AS527QW,B00OGPYUV0″ linkid=”d0f1004ff8083272ff9e84d5852d5f87″ title=”Recommended Products”]
Stephanie Topacio Long
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Stephanie Topacio Long is a writer and editor whose writing interests range from business to books. She also contributes to…
Terrifier 3 knocks out Joker 2, takes No. 1 spot at the weekend box office
Art the Clown brings terror for the holidays in Terrifier 3.

There was a murder at the box office over the weekend, as Art the Clown killed Arthur Fleck. The Wild Robot was an accessory after the fact as Joker: Folie à Deux's brief stint at No. 1 came to an end. The Joker sequel was unseated by Terrifier 3, the indie horror franchise featuring David Howard Thornton as the serial killer known as Art the Clown. This sequel not only outperformed projections with $18.3 million, putting it ahead of all other movies this weekend, but it earned more than Terrifier 2's lifetime gross of $15.7 million.

DreamWorks Animation's The Wild Robot finished in second place with $13.45 million, bringing its domestic total to $83.7 million. Meanwhile, Joker: Folie à Deux fell 81% from its disappointing $37 million opening to only $7.55 million, which narrowly gave it third place. It's a catastrophic drop for the film, which now has $51.6 million domestically against a $200 million budget and a large advertising budget as well. This movie is going to lose a lot of money for Warner Bros., with the only question being how much.

Read more
This low-budget horror movie might sink Joker 2 at the box office this weekend
A man in white suit smiles in Joker: Folie a Deux.

It's not an exaggeration to say that Warner Bros. is not happy right now. Still reeling from its expensive action prequel Furiosa disappointing at the box office over the summer, the legendary studio suffered further embarrassment when its long-awaited, $190 million follow-up to the billion-dollar-grossing 2019 hit Joker, Joker: Folie á Deux, flopped, grossing an embarrassing $37.8 million over three days. To put this in context, just over a month ago, the movie was projected to make over $100 million in its opening weekend.

What happened? Well, that's a topic for another article, but the simple version is this: if it isn't good, and no one is asking for it, people won't see it. Period. Now the problem for WB is this: if few people wanted to see Joker 2 on the first weekend, what makes them think more will come on the second weekend?

Read more
Is Joker 2 in trouble? Box office tracking significantly less than 2019’s Joker
Joker sits at a table while Harley Quin sits behind him.

 

Arthur Fleck might be smiling throughout Joker: Folie à Deux, but the initial box office tracking for the anticipated sequel is no laughing matter.

Read more