Universal and Illumination have a Christmas hit on their hands judging by the debut weekend The Grinch is projected to have. Despite opening a month before the holiday season officially hits, the CG animated film, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch as the titular character, Billboard reports The Grinch is expected to debut at No. 1 in the box office and bow out the weekend with $67 million.
Produced on a budget of $75 million, the film opened in 4,414 theaters across the country to mixed reviews on Friday (Nov. 9). The film is directed by Scott Mosier and Yarrow Cheney, while the film's cast is rounded out by Rashida Jones, Kenan Thompson, Angela Lansbury, Cameron Seely, and Pharrell Williams. It's undoubtedly a strong opening for the film, but with Christmas fast approaching and the general awareness of the classic Dr. Seuss story, it's not exactly surprising.
Elsewhere on the chart, the Rami Malek-starring Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody is expected to finish the weekend at No. 2 with $29 million, a dip of 43% from its first weekend at the box office. Meanwhile, World War II Nazi zombie film Overlord will likely bring in a muted $10 million in its first weekend at the box office, nudging out the disappointing launch of Girl in the Spider's Web for the No. 3 spot.
It's not been a particularly great weekend for films that didn't feature the Grinch or Rami Malek sporting huge fake teeth, apparently.
