Ant-Man and The Wasp might be all the rage this weekend, but it isn't the only superhero film in theaters. Incredibles 2 is still going strong, and despite being its fourth weekend in theaters, the superhero sequel is set to claim the No. 2 spot for the weekend. The movie has broken a bunch of records at the box office already, but now it's poised to claim what might be its biggest achievement. This weekend, Incredibles 2 will make box office history by becoming the first animated movie to make $500 million domestically.
While the final numbers for the weekend aren't in yet, The Wrap is reported that Incredibles 2 will reach $500 million at the box office domestically. This would make it the highest-grossing animated movie in America. The previous record holder was Finding Dory, which opened two years ago and went on to gross $486 million domestically. Not only that, but Incredibles 2 will also become the twelfth film to gross over $500 million domestically, and will likely pass Rogue One to join the top ten all-time domestic list.
This comes after Incredibles 2 already had a record-breaking opening for animation. The sequel bowed out opening weekend with $182 million, which means that it made more than every Marvel movie with the exception of Black Panther and the three Avengers films.
Interestingly, the sequel has only made a little over $200 million in foreign markets, which are usually bigger than domestic numbers As for why Incredibles 2 is finding such success with American audiences, the key reason might be nostalgia. It's been 14 years since the original Incredibles movies. Kids who saw that movie in theaters are now millennials with cash in their pockets and clear willingness to spend it in theaters. I can say that in my packed showing, the vast majority of the audience were adults.
This is probably less of a factor, but superhero movies are also much more popular than when the first film was in theaters. More and more people are heading to theaters to enjoy the laughs and entertainment that the genre is becoming known for.
Of course, it doesn't hurt that the movie is really good. The sequel puts fan-favorite Elastigirl front and center, while Mr. Incredible milks the laughs by raising the kids alone. And we definitely can't forget Jack-Jack, who completely steals the show. 14 years is a long time to wait but it was clearly worth it for audiences and Disney.
Incredibles 2 likely still has a few more healthy weeks to go left in theaters, so see it while you still can. If you've already seen it, there are plenty of more Disney movies on the horizon so check out our list of upcoming Disney movies to watch out for.
