Disney’s 'Lilo & Stitch' Poised for $100M+ Opening
Disney’s highly anticipated live-action adaptation of Lilo & Stitch is set to make waves this Memorial Day weekend, with long-lead tracking pointing toward a three-day opening north of $100 million. The excitement is fueled by massive engagement with its trailer, which has already crossed 158 million views—making it one of Disney’s most-watched live-action previews.
Starring Maia Kealoha as Lilo and a CGI rendition of the beloved alien Stitch, the film draws nostalgic-driven interest while appealing to a new generation of moviegoers. The strong opening projections place it among the studio’s most promising Memorial Day contenders in recent years.
‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’ Eyes Franchise Record
Tom Cruise’s final outing as Ethan Hunt in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is tracking for a massive debut that could surpass the franchise’s previous best of $61 million, set by Fallout in 2018. Paramount and Skydance have set the stage for a powerful launch bolstered by a world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on May 14.
The film is also scheduled for an Out of Competition screening at Cannes, a move expected to ramp up international buzz and drive anticipation in the weeks leading up to release. With Cruise’s previous Memorial Day success in Top Gun: Maverick, expectations are sky-high for another blockbuster performance.
Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts*’ Opens Summer Movie Season
Before the holiday weekend rush, Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts will kick off the summer box office on May 2. Though tracking lower than expected, with a projected opening between $65 million and $85 million, the film is already pacing ahead of past MCU titles like Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings at similar points in the pre-release window.
Starring Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan, Thunderbolts brings together a team of antiheroes and misfits, diverging from the traditional Avengers lineup. It’s positioned as a unique entry in the MCU, though early projections suggest the Memorial Day heavyweights may overshadow it.
A Strong Rebound for Memorial Day Weekend
After a lackluster showing in 2024, this year’s Memorial Day box office is expected to surge, driven by the double-punch of Lilo & Stitch and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. Industry experts are optimistic that the combined openings of these two films could rival the post-pandemic highs of 2022, when Top Gun: Maverick led a $223.7 million weekend.
According to Box Office Pro, the stage is set for a record-setting weekend that could even approach the all-time Memorial Day benchmark of $314.2 million set in 2013. With hype continuing to build and ticket sales ramping up, movie theaters are preparing for one of the biggest weekends of the year.