Disney‘s latest live-action film The Little Mermaid starring Halle Bailey is slated to hit No. 1 at its box office opening weekend. The film made $38 million USD domestically on opening day and is also expected to gross between $120 to $130 million USD over the course of the four-day Memorial Day weekend.
The film opened in 4,320 theaters and is a musical remake that saw Bailey take on the titular role of the mermaid princess Ariel. In previews, the movie raked in $10.3 million USD and ranked the seventh-highest haul for a rated G or PG film. The numbers put the film on track to grossing over $100 million USD over the holiday weekend. The budget of the film sat at $250 million USD.
The Little Mermaid faces competition from Fast X which opened last weekend to $67 million USD nationwide. This weekend, the tenth installment is slated to bring in about $28 million USD over the four-day long weekend and hit $500 million USD at the global box office. The Little Mermaid stars Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric, Javier Bardem as King Triton, Daveed Diggs as Sebastian the crab, Jacob Tremblay as Flounder the fish and Awkwafina as Scuttle the seabird. Directed by Rob Marshall, the film faces mixed reviews, scoring 66% on Rotten Tomatoes.
In other entertainment news, Will Ferrell is reportedly in talks to star in a John Madden biopic.
