‘Tomorrowland’ Earns $725,000, ‘Poltergeist’ Scares Up $1.4 Million on Thursday Night

Disney’s “Tomorrowland” has opened with $725,000 in Thursday night preview screenings at 701 locations in the U.S., while MGM-Fox’s “Poltergeist” has scared up $1.4 million at 2,500 sites.

Disney opted to limit the Thursday showings of the George Clooney sci-fier to what it dubbed “movie palaces” in order to highlight director Brad Bird’s vision. It noted that “Tomorrowland” scored a $1,077 theater average, which would have given it $2.7 million had it played on 2,500 screens and $3.2 million if it had been launched at 3,000 theaters — placing it in the same range as “World War Z” and “Tron: Legacy” with $3.6 million, “X-Men: First Class” at $3.3 million, “Inception” at $3 million, and “Interstellar at $2.7 million.

“Tomorrowland,” which carries a $180 million pricetag, opens Friday at 3,972 U.S. locations. It’s on track to debut to $40 million for the three-day weekend and around $50 million for the four-day period. “Tomorrowland” also opens in 65 foreign markets.

“Poltergeist,” a remake of the 1982 haunted house classic, was co-financed by MGM and Fox 2000 for $35 million and is expected to do $20 million to $25 million for the four-day frame. Its launch is comparable to those of “Dracula Untold” with $1.3 million in previews and a $23.3 million opening weekend, and “Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones” with $1.2 million in previews and an $18.3 million opening weekend.

Universal’s second weekend of “Pitch Perfect 2″ is looking at roughly $40 million for the four-day period while the sophomore session of Warner Bros.’ “Mad Max: Fury Road” should do approximately $30 million during the long weekend.

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