Kung Fu Panda 4 makes $3.8 million in Thursday preview

Two legendary heroes battle it out at the box office this weekend: the Dragon Warrior and Lisan Al-Ghayb.

“Kung Fu Panda 4” and “Dune: Part Two” will top the box office. To date, Universal's family-friendly animated film has grossed $3.8 million in previews at the box office from 4,035 North American theaters.

It's expected to be a close battle at the box office, but karate-loving panda Po, played by Jack Black, has a slight edge over intergalactic hero Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet. “Kung Fu Panda 4” is expected to gross between $45 million and $50 million in its opening weekend, while “Dune: Part Two” is on track to make $40 million to $45 million in its opening weekend. The second to be released.

The lack of family films in theaters should bode well for “Kung Fu Panda 4.” Besides “Dune: Part Two,” which revitalized the theatrical business last week, there has been no other box office success so far in 2024. As evidenced by last year's hit films like “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and ” Elemental” and “Wonka,” families with young children will be heading to the theaters in droves to get the right movie. This could help “Kung Fu Panda 4” have the series' best opening since the first film in 2008.

The original “Kung Fu Panda” movie started the karate franchise with $60 million and ended up grossing $632 million worldwide. The next two films were also successful. “Kung Fu Panda 2” opened with $47.6 million in 2011 and grossed $665 million worldwide, while “Kung Fu Panda 3” debuted in 2016 with $41 million and a total of $521 million. .

This weekend also sees the release of Lionsgate and Blumhouse's thriller “Imaginary,” which made $725,000 in previews and is targeting a $10 million to $14 million debut, and Angel Studio's religious thriller “Cabrini,” which is aiming to debut at $10 million to $14 million. Low revenue generation. numbers.