‘Despicable Me 2’ Outpaces ‘The Lone Ranger’ On Tuesday Night

If Tuesday night’s numbers are any indication of things to come, then Despicable Me 2 will reign supreme at the box office over the holiday.

Universal’s sequel to the 2010 box office hit is expected to be extremely popular with moviegoers over the next five days. According to The Wrap, analysts believe the movie could make well over $100 million when everything is said and done.

Despicable Me 2 is certainly getting off on the right foot. The $76 million sequel earned $4.7 million from Tuesday evening and midnight screenings. This is in addition to the impressive $50 million the movie generated from foreign markets ahead of its domestic release.

Unfortunately for Buena Vista and The Lone Ranger, business doesn’t appear to be booming. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the movie earned around $2 million during its own Tuesday night debut. The $220 million adaptation of the classic television series is expected to bring in around $70 million when the weekend wraps up.

The lack of interest in Gore Verbinski’s version of The Lone Ranger is surprising given Johnny Depp’s popularity and the strong marketing push behind the feature. This could mean that audiences are growing weary of the actor’s quirky characters. Dark Shadows was also a disappointment for Depp when it landed in theaters last year.

Although it appears Despicable Me 2 will be sitting pretty by the weekend, Verbinski’s effort could be the latest in a string of weak openings this summer.

Director Roland Emmerich’s White House Down, a movie that stars both Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx, didn’t make a huge impact when it landed in theaters last week. The movie was beaten by both Mosnters University and The Heat, proving that big stars don’t always mean big success.

The same fate could befall Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim, a movie that cost Warner Bros. upwards of $200 million. While many people scoffed when George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and David Lynch recently criticized the industry, their frustrations are currently being reflected at the box office.

Are you planning to catch Despicable Me 2 in theaters over the weekend? Are you surprised the animated sequel is on-track to beat The Lone Ranger?