Jack Black's Po is back after nearly a decade, and he's already receiving a hero's welcome from audiences.
Kung Fu Panda 4 debuted on the big screen with $3.8 million in previews Thursday at 2 p.m., before officially opening everywhere Friday. The fourth film in the franchise is expected to gross more than $50 million over Oscar weekend, a win for the family market, as well as DreamWorks and its parent company Universal (the studio behind the Oscar favorite). Oppenheimer).
Alongside Black, returning voice cast members include Dustin Hoffman as Kung Fu master Shifu, James Hong as Po's adoptive father, Bryan Cranston as Po's biological father Li, and Ian McShane as Shifu's former student and archnemesis.
Newcomers to the series include Viola Davis as a little lizard and shapeshifting witch, and Awakawfina as the quick-witted thief Po needs to protect his world. Ke Huy Quan also joins the franchise.
Kung Fu Panda 4 is directed by Mike Mitchell, who also directed Trolls And Shrek forever.
All eyes will be on Denis Villeneuveve Dune: part two to see how it will hold up on its second outing. The Legendary and Warner Bros. sci-fi epic opened with a stellar $82.5 million domestically and closed Thursday with a total of more than $110 million in North America and $200 million worldwide. Box office experts believe Dunes 2 could earn around $40 million in its second outing.
Lionsgate and Blumhouse Imaginary also enters the mix and earned $725,000 during Thursday's previews. The original horror pic is hoping for an opening between $10 million and $14 million. The story follows a young woman (DeWanda Wise) who returns to her childhood home, where her youngest stepdaughter (Pyper Braun) develops a strange attachment to a teddy bear named Chauncey that she finds in the basement. ground. The film is directed by Jeff Wadlow, who also produces alongside Jason Blum.
When it comes to Oscar-nominated films, many films vying for top honors are already available at home, but some could still see an uptick at the box office. What if Christopher Nolan and Universal Oppenheimer wins the Best Picture award, it will make box office history by becoming the highest-grossing shot to win the award since the finale The Lord of the Rings in 2004. Oppeneheimer generated nearly $960 million in worldwide ticket sales.