Fight! “Mortal Kombat II” is gearing up for a box office battle this weekend with last week’s champ, “The Devil Wears Prada 2.” The Warner Bros. and New Line action movie has made $5.2 million in Thursday previews.
Based on the popular, violent video game franchise, “Mortal Kombat II” is expected to make $40 million to $45 million this weekend, though Warner Bros. is playing it safer with a $35 million prediction. It’ll be a close showdown with 20th Century Studios’ “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” which is looking to make $38 million to $42 million in its second weekend after opening to $77 million. Some projections have both movies making around $50 million this weekend, thanks to positive word-of-mouth and high Mother’s Day turnout for “Devil Wears Prada 2.”
The previous “Mortal Kombat” movie released in 2021 in theaters and on HBO Max simultaneously amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It opened to $23 million and tapped out with $84 million worldwide from a $55 million budget. The sequel ramps things up with an $80 million price tag and even more gory fight scenes. Karl Urban joins the cast as washed-up movie star Johnny Cage, who joins the movie’s titular battle to the death that includes ninjas, monsters and several fighters resurrected from the dead. The cast also includes Adeline Rudolph as Kitana, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Josh Lawson as Kano, Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade and more.
This weekend also sees the release of Amazon MGM’s family friendly mystery “Sheep Detectives,” which made $1.03 million in previews and aims to make $12 million to $15 million in its opening. Paramount’s concert film “Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D),” which made $2.2 million in previews, is projected for $8 million to $10 million. However, they’ll fall behind Lionsgate’s “Michael,” which is expected to add a strong $35 million to $40 million in its third weekend.
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