‘Cars 2′ Beats Box Office Expectations, Grosses $68 Million in Opening Weekend

Well, it looks like Pixar has another major success on their hands. Disney/Pixar’s Cars 2, which opened in theaters nationwide on Friday, took in $68 million at the domestic box office this weekend, making it the 12th consecutive Pixar film to hold the #1 spot at the box office on its opening weekend.

Prior to its opening weekend, Hollywood prognosticators had predicted that the film would open in the $50-$55 million range, citing the less-than-favorable critical reception that the film has received. Currently, the film holds a 33% rating on RottenTomatoes.com, based on a cumulative review of about 150 different critics. In comparison, last year’s blockbuster Toy Story 3 holds a 99% rating on the site, and the original Cars film has a rating of 74% (previously the lowest rating given to a Pixar film).

However, it seems that this critical reception is no predictor for the film’s success. Merchandise sales for the film have propelled it to be Disney’s largest film licensing property, and the film’s opening weekend was the fifth-largest opening for a Pixar film, as well as the fourth-largest June opening for any film (the largest was Disney/Pixar’s own Toy Story 3). It looks like it will take much more than film critics to hinder Pixar’s overwhelming success.