Just Lin’s Fast and Furious 6 helped set a new Memorial Day record.
The latest installment in the extremely popular action-packed franchise raced to the top of the weekend box office with $98 million . The sequel’s four-day total is an estimated $122 million. Needless to say, fans should expect sequels well into the foreseeable future.
According to The Wrap , Fast and Furious 6 was also a huge hit in several foreign markets. The flick opened in the top spot in no less than 59 different territories. The website reports that the film has made a staggering $158 overseas. The film’s estimated $160 million production budget has already been recouped.
These numbers are much stronger than those posted by Lin’s Fast Five , proving the franchise is only getting stronger with each effort. The 2011 effort finished out its opening weekend with around $86.2 million in ticket sales.
Director Todd Phillips’ The Hangover Part III , on the other hand, didn’t fare nearly as well as its high-octane competition this weekend. Box Office Mojo reports that the critically panned comedy made around $42.4 million over the weekend. The film earned approximately $63 million since opening on Thursday.
Although reviews were exceedingly poor for the third entry in the series, that didn’t stop people from showing up to check it out. Critics may have hated the flick, but moviegoers apparently didn’t mind it too much. The Rotten Tomatoes audience score is perched at a respectable 88 percent.
This weekend’s other notable release, the animated flick Epic , enjoyed around $34.2 million in ticket sales from moviegoers looking for something the entire family could enjoy. Director Chris Wedge’s comedy is packed with an array of stars including Beyonce, Colin Farrell, Josh Hutcherson, and Amanda Seyfriend.
J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek Into Darkness stumbled a bit against the hefty Memorial Day competition. The big-budget sequel to the 2009 reboot generated an additional $38 million over the weekend.
Overall, Hollywood expects to make over $300 million at the Memorial Day box office. This beats the previous record of $276 million set in 2011.
The top ten films are included below. These numbers are based on estimates; the actual totals won’t be released until Tuesday.
1. Fast & Furious 6 – $98 million 2. The Hangover Part III – $42 million 3. Star Trek Into Darkness – $38 million 4. Epic – $34.2 million 5. Iron Man 3 – $19.4 million 6. The Great Gatsby – $13.7 million 7. Mud – $1.9 million 8. 42 – $1.2 million 9. The Croods – $1.2 million 10. Oblivion – $815,000
Did you catch Fast and Furious 6 or The Hangover Part III in theaters over the weekend? Are you surprised by the box office results?