“Now You See Me 3” Eyes No. 1 for opening of more than $20 million

UPDATE, Friday noon: Lionsgate eyes third No. 1 opening in 2025 with trio Now you see me: now you don’t see me anymorewho pulls a rabbit out of his hat with a $20 to $24 million begin after an estimated $7.5 million on Friday, including $2.1 million in previews. The picture is booked in 3,403 cinemas.

Now you see me 3 from director Ruben Fleischer has the best reviews and audience reactions so far in the Jesse Eisenberg-Woody Harrelson-Isla Fisher-Dave Franco trilogy at 60% fresh with Rotten Tomatoes critics and 83% with RT audiences.

Social media reach for the trio across TikTok, YouTube, Caught stealing (134.5 million).

RelishMix spotted positive word of mouth ahead of the opening: “Nostalgia triggers intent as fans register the throwback vibe and want the caper to return to the big screen. You can feel the fist-pumping energy in lines like “The OGs are back” and “We’re so back,” and the Zombie LandThe reunion-style talk (“Imagine the Zombieland reunion,” “Magician Avengers let’s go”) reframes this as a comfort food show. Second, the title finally comes across as a shareable joke and a little masterstroke of brand repair; “Eventually…they used ‘Now You Don’t.’ There is even goodwill for the film being released as far away as Taiwan.

Was the previous opening high (but not #1) for Lionsgate this year John Wick spin-off Ballerina to $24.5 million the first weekend of June. While ultimately not a success in itself for the franchise – $58 million in the US and $137.2 million worldwide on a production cost of over $90 million – the spin-off would have generated market value towards Keanu Reeves’ library of action intellectual property.

This weekend there will be a fight between the second weekend of 20th Century Studios and Predator: Badlands and Paramount’s Edgar Wright reboot The running man with Glen Powell, both hovering around $15 million each. The latter plays in 3,534 theaters and plans an investment of $5.5 million on Friday, while Badlands sees $4 million on its second Friday from 3,725 sites. No RT score yet for Running Man. If Badlands hit $15 million, a 63% drop for a 10-day cumulative through Sunday of $68.3 million. 2004 Alien versus predator is currently the highest-grossing title in the franchise with $80.2 million in the United States and $177.4 million worldwide.

Paramount Regret you continues to be in the top 5 in 2,709 theaters with $1.1 million in its fourth Friday and a fourth image of $3.8 million-43%, with a cumulative $44.7 million.

Fifth place goes to Neon’s third Oz Perkins genre film, a $6 million microbudget production. The Guardian, with 1 million dollars today and 2 to 3 million dollars opening. Reviews aren’t very good on the film, giving it 59% on Rotten Tomatoes.

PREVIOUSLY, Friday AM: While that may seem too tight, there are rumors that Lionsgate Now you see me: now you don’t see me anymore could have the best chance to become No. 1 this weekend after collecting $2.1 million in total, Thursday previews. At least that’s the confidence a handful of sources gave us Thursday evening. Now you see me 2 made $1.75 million in previews as of June 2016.

Paramount’s $110 million overhaul The running man enlarged $1.9 million in 3,000 theaters during Thursday evening shows. Both Now you see me 3 And Running Man look $20 million and up. Reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes, however, have similar opinions for both titles. Running Man has the advantage, 64% to 59%.

The advantage that Now you see me 3 a is its PG-13 rating compared to Running ManIt’s R. Now you see me 3 seeks to be both an evening film while also appealing to families. The previous two films made between 67% and 80% of their worldwide box office overseas. Note that Lionsgate is one of the only movie studios that licenses to foreigners to finance their productions. Now you see me 3 cost north of $90 million net before P&A.

RELATED: ‘Now You See Me: Now You Don’t’ Review: Gen Z-Driven Third Part Tries to Teach Old Magicians New Tricks

In the meantime, Running Manthe previews of are in line with those of Neon The Monkey, which generated $1.9 million in total previews ahead of a $5.8 million Friday and a three-day total of $14 million. Running ManThe previews of are much lower than those of Tron Ares, another reboot of the 1980s sci-fi series, which grossed $14.4 million on Friday and $33.2 million over three days when it bowed last month.

The original Running Manstarring Arnold Schwarzenegger, debuted in the exact same slot in mid-November 1987 with a #1 take of $8.1 million (not adjusted for inflation). The film grossed $38.1 million domestically and earned a CinemaScore B+ on a reported production cost of $27 million. The picture continued to hold the top spot in its second weekend before giving way to Disney/Touchstone. Three men and a baby during the Thanksgiving holiday. Running Man was the 30th highest-grossing film of 1987 in a year led by Beverly Hills Cop ($153.6 million), Section ($136.7 million) and Fatal attraction ($125.9 million). Following the summer of 1987 Predator, which at the time was Schwarzenegger’s highest-grossing film of his career grossing $60 million domestically, Running Man failed to meet expectations, although its American-Canadian version was in line with previous Arnie films like Commando, Conan the Barbarian And The Terminator.

Still, keep in mind that this is a marathon and not a sprint for both films given that Thanksgiving is two weeks away.

#1 photo of the week at 20th Century Studios, Predator: Badlands, made an estimate $1.7 million yesterday (26% reduction compared to Wednesday) for a total of $53.2 million. The Elle Fanning movie is expected to see a 60% drop in its second weekend, which is on par with the genre.