'Finding Dory' Sets Record On Opening Night

Image via slashfilm.com

The long anticipated sequel to Finding Nemo has finally hit theaters and is already making some noise. Earlier this year, Disney Animation Studios struck gold with the performance of Zootopia, which recently crossed the $1 billion, Pixar is set on making Finding Dory the second biggest box office opening of 2016. I would not be surprised to see, among tons of children in the theater, a fair amount of college aged kids who have been waiting for this film for 13 years, myself included. I think that generation will have a pretty big impact on the overall performance of this film, the same way Toy Story 3 did.

Finding Dory will follow the most popular blue tang fish in the sea as she embarks on a journey, with the help of Nemo and Marlin, to find her parents. Aside from the returning cast that includes Ellen DeGeneres and Albert Brooks, we'll also be introduced to some new characters as well. Ty Burrell and Ed O'Neil of Modern Family will be playing the roles of Bailey the beluga whale and Hank the octopus. Kaitlin Oslon of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia fame is also a great addition to the cast, playing Destiny the whale shark. Already, from the comedic talent alone, this sounds like the sequel we've been waiting for. However, I hope there are still those Pixar moments that really pull at your heartstrings. No need for me to mention the ending of Toy Story 3, right?

In a report from Deadline, Finding Dory opened in 4,305 theaters in the United States and raked in $9.2 million on opening night, which sets it up for a showing of over $100 million in its opening weekend, thus breaking the record for an animated feature film. The sequel has a little more than doubled the opening night numbers of Toy Story 3 and tripled the numbers set by Inside Out. With that being said, it will most definitely be an uphill battle if they seek to unseat the opening weekend numbers set by Captain America: Civil War, and I don't think it'll reach those numbers. However, it'll certainly be sitting atop the box office this weekend, beating out its immediate competitor in Central Intelligence, only projected to make $30 million this weekend after its $1.835 million on opening night. Unfortunately, with more releases in the coming weeks, something that films earlier this year didn't have to worry about, Finding Dory won't be sitting in that top spot for long. However, I do think it'll remain in the top five for a while. I think its wide appeal to audiences of all ages, especially being a summer movie which means school is out, will add to its longevity in theaters.

If you were a kid when Finding Nemo was released back in 2003 and were picked up from school early to go see it like I was, I highly recommend going to see this film.