Captain America: Civil War
Continuing the string of highly-anticipated Marvel movies kicking off the summer movie season, 'Captain America: Civil War', the very, very, very anticipated superhero three-quel to the universally liked 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier', arrives in theaters, and could possibly register one of the biggest debuts of all time. First off, goodwill from the second movie should carry on here. 'Winter Soldier' debuted to a very good $95 million back in 2014 and went on to earn $259.8 million overall. With a Tomatometer of 89% and Flixter score of 92%, this is definitely one of the most well-liked comic book films in recent history. Plus, Marvel has always had success on the first weekend of May, with such openers like 'Iron Man' ($98.6m/$318.4m), 'Iron Man 2' ($128.1m/$312.4m), 'Thor' ($65.7m/$181m), 'Marvel's The Avengers' ($207.4m/$623.4m), 'Iron Man 3' ($174.1m/$409m), and 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' ($191.3m/$459m). Not to mention the various other successful Marvel films, such as 'Guardians of the Galaxy' ($94.3m/$333.2m). And not only is Captain America in this film, but Iron Man and a bunch of other Avengers join the cast as well, making this an event film. Black Panther and Spider-Man debut in this film as well, which should make fans drool with impatience. Reviews are amazing (Spider-Man pun not intended), with a stellar 97% Tomatometer based on 35 reviews. The want-to-see rating is a very encouraging +99% from over 100k voters. However, coming off of the massive grosses from 'Deadpool' and 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice' so soon, potential could be slightly limited. Still, 'Deadpool' came out just a little less than three months ago, and 'Batman v Superman' is falling off very quickly, so there should be a respectable amount of breathing room for the big-budget tentpole. Projections are enthusiastic, ranging anywhere from $165 million to as high as even $200 million. While some may think that is outlandish, it is definitely possible as the stacked cast, overall appeal among most moviegoers, and awesome reviews should definitely turn out in its favor. I'm going to go with a number a little over the latter number, as I feel confident that this will be one of the biggest movies ever. It could even give 'Avengers' a run for its money, though we'll have to look at its actual holds to determine that.Predicted Opening: $203.5 million
Predicted Total: $570 million
The Darkness
Supernatural has been having a pretty decent year so far, with two releases exceeding expectations ('The Forest' with $26.6m and 'The Boy' with $35.8m). Kevin Bacon should also draw in some moviegoers for 'The Darkness', the latest low-budget entry in the popular genre. A couple problems, though, is that there is a lot of competition. While horror fans won't be occupied until the beginning of June, older audiences will be looking at a variety of much more appealing options in the market, such as 'Money Monster' (opening the same weekend), 'The Nice Guys', and, to some extent, 'X-Men: Apocalypse'. While it probably won't reach the heights of 2016's other horror films, 'Darkness' should be a modest performer in its own right.Predicted Opening: $7 million
Predicted Total: $18 million
Money Monster
The $30-million drama/thriller 'Money Monster' will attempt to lock on to second place behind 'Civil War'. On paper, it looks like solid counter-programming: a good old-fashioned reality TV thriller starring some of your favorite actors aiming towards anyone who isn't into explosive, action-packed blockbusters. Also, with its financial-based premise, it should reel in some of those audiences. George Clooney and Julia Roberts aren't exactly reliable draws anymore, though, and it's unlikely they can do anything to help this film truly break out.Predicted Opening: $14 million
Predicted Total: $38.5 million
The Angry Birds Movie
After countless tepid attempts to replicate the success of 'Tomb Raider', 'The Angry Birds Movie' will attempt to dethrone that film to become the biggest video game adaptation of all time (a position to be challenged by 2016's other contenders 'Warcraft' and 'Assassin's Creed'). With the advantage of being more family-friendly than the recent bloody R-rated fare as well as some solid pieces of marketing, it definitely has potential to do so. In fact, in 2015 more than 3 billion downloads of the game have been made. Still, doesn't it kind of feel that this movie came out a bit too late considering that the Angry Birds games aren't nearly as popular as they were when they first came out? Also, 'Zootopia' and 'The Jungle Book' will likely continue to have a presence at the box office, and coming out so soon before 'Alice Through the Looking Glass' and 'Finding Dory' debut is kind of a dumb move. 'Angry Birds' should be solid in its own right overall, and will likely set a new benchmark for video game movies in the process.Predicted Opening: $45 million
Predicted Total: $148.5 million
Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising
Another highly-anticipated sequel coming out in May is 'Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising', the sequel to the 2014 smash hit 'Neighbors' ($49m/$150.2m). With the trailers promising more raunchy humor and laugh-out-loud gags, it looks as if it could be as big as a hit as the first one. Most of the returning cast is here (including crowd-pleasers Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, and Zac Efron), with the additions of Chloe Grace Moretz and Selena Gomez in significant roles, which should bring in younger viewers. While it basically looks pretty similar to its predecessor, the sorority element of it will likely keep it fresh. However, comedy sequels have been performing under expectations recently, with such examples of 'Horrible Bosses 2' (down 53.7%), 'Ride Along 2' (down 32.6%), and 'Ted 2' (down 62.8%). If 'Neighbors 2' plays like those films, it will wind up with anywhere between $56 million to $101 million. Seth Rogen and Zac Efron have also seen underwhelming performances from their follow-ups to 'Neighbors', with 'The Night Before' ($43m) and 'Dirty Grandpa' ($35.6m) making less than its opening weekend. However, given the mass appeal of the first film, an opening between those two totals is very likely, though it probably won't break free of the "comedy sequel affect".Predicted Opening: $41.5 million
Predicted Total: $110 million
The Nice Guys
Predicted Opening: $19 million
Predicted Total: $65 million
Alice Through the Looking Glass
Coming in a whopping six years after the $200-million worldwide smash 'Alice in Wonderland' surprised everyone, 'Alice Through the Looking Glass' looks to have a mostly respectable run as well. The big-budget effects-driven fantasy spectacle will attempt to reach the $116.1 million opening and $334.2 million of the original. While it isn't necessarily a remake like the rest of Disney's recent fantasy hits, being a sequel to one of the biggest should help. While star Johnny Depp definitely isn't the kind of person he was back then, he should shine in his widely-appealing fantasy role. A similar example was 2011's 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'. While it didn't come anywhere close to its predecessors, it still managed to hold its own given that it came out four years after the previous franchise low. However, competition is hotter than ever. 'Captain America: Civil War' and 'Angry Birds' will still be in plenty of theaters, 'X-Men: Apocalypse' will take away more mature audiences, 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows' will take away the younger audiences, and 'Finding Dory' will take away the way younger audiences. While this means that the film will likely fall of quickly, 'Alice' should still rack up a solid debut to make up for some of it. Registering in the Top 10 Memorial Day openings is also likely.Predicted Opening: $70.5 million ($84.5 million four-day)
Predicted Total: $190 million
X-Men: Apocalypse
Man, it's a huge year for comic book movies isn't it? With 'Deadpool' and 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice' already out and 'Captain America: Civil War', this, 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows', 'Suicide Squad', and 'Doctor Strange' still on the way this year, it will definitely be in the Top 5 biggest-grossing years ever. But that's for a much later post. Now back to the main topic. 'X-Men: Apocalypse' will attempt to beat 'X-Men: The Last Stand' for the biggest opening and total of the X-Men franchise that isn't a spin-off (like the Wolverine films or 'Deadpool', which ironically is the biggest film of the franchise). Though it will likely fail to take the title of biggest Memorial Day debut, it should get in the Top 5. With the stakes raised even higher this time around (instead of time-traveling to stop murderous robots, the team must stop a God-like mutant from ravaging the world) and more fan-favorite characters both new and returning from long ago (Jean Grey, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Jubilee, Psylocke, and Archangel among others), this should make a franchise high (for non spin-offs, of course). The last main installment, 'Days of Future Past', was very well-received (as well as 'Deadpool'), so goodwill will likely carry over. And last but not least, the final trailer revealed the unexpected and now much-anticipated return of the man who does what he does best. Are you ready? It's Wolverine.Predicted Opening: $109 million ($130.5 million four-day)
Predicted Total: $272.5 million
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