‘Minions & Monsters’ landed the number one spot at the North American box office over the Fourth of July weekend, but the celebration came with an asterisk. The film posted the lowest opening in the franchise’s 16 year history.
The film earned an estimated 36.4 million dollars over the traditional three day weekend and 61.4 million dollars across the full five day holiday stretch. That result fell well short of Universal’s own expectations, which had been targeting closer to 80 million dollars for the five day frame.
How it compares to past entries
This opening puts Minions & Monsters below every previous film in the Despicable Me and Minions franchise. Two years ago, Despicable Me 4 opened with 122 million dollars over the same five day holiday stretch. Back in 2022, Minions: The Rise of Gru pulled in a similar 123 million dollars during its own five day debut.
Even more striking, the new film opened below the very first Despicable Me movie from 2010, which earned 56.3 million dollars during its debut weekend, a number that was not adjusted for inflation.
Why the opening came in soft
Industry analysts point to a mix of factors behind the underwhelming domestic start. This year’s Fourth of July fell on a Saturday, a scheduling quirk that likely pulled some moviegoers away from theatres in favour of fireworks and outdoor celebrations tied to America’s 250th anniversary.
Beyond scheduling, some analysts also pointed to slightly softer audience reception compared to earlier films. While critics loved Minions & Monsters, giving it a franchise best 91 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, audience scores told a more modest story. The film earned an A- on CinemaScore, a 76 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, and just a 58 percent definite recommend score on PostTrak. By comparison, Minions: The Rise of Gru had scored an A on CinemaScore and a 71 percent definite recommend rating.
The story overseas looks much brighter
While the domestic numbers disappointed, the film’s international performance has been considerably stronger. Minions & Monsters brought in around 98 million dollars overseas through Sunday, expanding across more than 70 territories.
Combined with its domestic total, the film’s worldwide gross stands at approximately 159.8 million dollars so far. China led the way among international markets, while the film also topped charts in countries including Germany, Spain, Poland, and the Netherlands.
A profitable film regardless
Despite the soft domestic debut, the film is still likely to turn a solid profit. Minions & Monsters was made on a reported budget of 85 million dollars, notably lower than the roughly 100 million dollar budgets of previous entries in the franchise.
Universal domestic distribution boss Jim Orr remained upbeat about the film’s prospects, noting that reaction scores continue to validate the franchise’s charm and appeal, while expressing confidence in a long and lucrative run throughout the rest of the summer.
Competing for attention at the box office
Minions & Monsters was not the only major release competing for audiences this holiday weekend. Toy Story 5 held strong in its third weekend, earning around 31 to 32 million dollars domestically and pushing its worldwide total past 600 million dollars.
Meanwhile, Warner Bros and DC’s Supergirl had a rough weekend of its own, falling nearly 74 to 76 percent in its second weekend to just around 9 to 9.6 million dollars, an even steeper decline than The Flash experienced during its own struggling run.