Minions & Monsters scored the seventh consecutive number one North American debut in the 16-year Despicable Me / Minions animation franchise, although the Independence Day session delivered the lowest start in the series for Illumination/Universal.
An estimated $36.4m Friday-Sunday haul and $61.4m over the five-day weekend pushed the franchise past $2bn in North America, yet opening weekend was not enough to match those of the previous four Despicable Me and two Minions features. Two years ago the most recent episode Despicable Me 4 arrived on $75m over Friday to Sunday and $122.6m over five days.
On a reported $85m budget and with solid international numbers driving the early worldwide tally to $159.9m, Pierre Coffin’s origins story of the diminutive yellow mischief-makers set in 1920s Hollywood will become profitable.
Yet there is no hiding the fact that these early numbers from 4,243 locations and the $80m five-day forecast will have Hollywood insiders debating the merits of a seventh instalment within the context of North America audiences, even through critics loved Minions & Monsters and the A-CinemaScore could spur a decent holdover.
July Fourth holiday celebrations did not help matters. Box office analyst EntTelligence reported 4.4million attendees over the five-day period, noting that 10.8% of foot traffic on Saturday (July 4) came after 8pm compared to 18.7% for the previous Saturday.
Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story 5 in second place added $31m for $366.3m after three weekends, while DC Studios/Warner Bros’ misfire Supergirl collapsed further in its second weekend, plummeting a dismal 74% on $9.6m for $58.5m.
Far better was Young Washington, the timely action adventure about the youthful exploits of the first president of the United States from Angel Studios and Wonder Project starring William Franklyn-Miller. Jon Erwin’s feature arrived in third place on $20.8m in 2,700 sites – an excellent result considering Young Washington had been tracking to open on around $15m.
The feature played well in the Midwest and South where it earned more than 65% of the weekend gross. Shortly after the debut, Erwin announced on social media that writing had begun on the sequel, 1776.
In its eighth weekend, summer smash Obsession added $5.3m for $245.3m through Focus Features and crossed $400m worldwide. A24’s Backrooms at number seven stands at $190.5m through A24 after six.
Speaking of A24, the studio’s adult comedy and Sundance entry The Invite directed by and co-starring Olivia Wilde broke into the top 10 in its second weekend, earning $800,708 from 28 screens for $1.4m.
Rentrack said the weekend’s overall three-day box office amounted to $121.3m, pushing the year-to-date tally to $4.9bn, which tracks 13.2% ahead of 2025 by the same stage. Summer is tracking 12% ahead of last year.
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