'Finding Dory' Remains in the Top Spot at the Box Office

Image via gamespot.com

Friday saw the premiere of Independence Day: Resurgence, the sequel to 1996's blockbuster hit Independence Day. There was a lot of skeptical voices surrounding this film, first with the absence of Will Smith and then the fact that there were no advance screenings for the press. From the trailers themselves, the general public seemed to be hesitant about the film. Now, we can finally look at the opening day numbers, and its safe to say that Independence Day: Resurgence did not have the showing it was hoping for, projected to rake in an estimated $43 million. On the other hand, Finding Dory continues to dominate.

After a $136.2 million opening weekend, the sequel to 2003's Finding Nemo is projected to make an estimated $75 million. To be fair, it really hasn't had any viable opponents this weekend. The Shallows was not going to unseat Finding Dory, nor was it going to be a big draw at the box office. Matthew McConaughey's Free State of Jones actually made less than The Shallows, which is only estimated to rake in $8 million this weekend. The only film that had any chance of surpassing the animated film was going to be Independence Day: Resurgance, but that is definitely not going to happen.

Disney continues to dominate the box office, which is why the release date for Finding Dory was perfect. Kids are out of school, its summer and it'll be seeing some repeat viewings. Also, the previous generation that saw the previous film as a child will most definitely be checking this film out as well, so Disney is utilizing nostalgia as well to dominate the box office. We should see the same thing with Toy Story 4 and Incredibles 2. Both have the appeal to kids and adults, and both have had quite a few years since their last film.

Finding Dory will probably see its reign as box office champ come to an end next weekend when Steve Spielberg's The BFG hits theaters. However, that will not matter in the least to Disney since they'll be handing over the top spot to themselves once again. This is the year of the mouse and we're a long way away from it being over.