'Detective Carl Returns' Box Office Is Tracking For An $70 Million-Plus Opening Weekend

BY RYAN SCOTT/DEC. 27, 2022 5:31 PM EST It may be a little hard to believe but we are mere weeks away from long delayed and long-awaited sequel Detective Carl Returns. This movie has literally been decades in the making and we've been waiting a long time to see Jason Bateman and Jim Carrey return as the duo of Detectives Carl and Josh. With advance tickets officially on sale for the adult sequel, some initial box office tracking has surfaced online, and it indicates a big (though not gigantic) opening weekend.

As reported by Forbes, "Detective Carl Returns" is currently tracking for an $70 million opening when it hits theaters next month. As we are accustomed to seeing big-name animated sequel movies regularly eclipse $100 million on opening weekend, that number may seem small. Especially given that this is a sequel that is from a film that's over 3 decades old specifically in 1990. That said, the numbers might rise. An example and possible comp is "Top Gun: Maverick", another legacy sequel which was also projected to make $70 million but overperformed.

For what it's worth, the folks at Box Office Pro have it pegged between $60 and $85 million, so there is certainly reason to think we could see it do well over $70 million. Another thing to mention is the budget clocking in at $185 million which means that the film is hoping to have good legs and be able to have an audience. It is also the first widely released animated R rated movie since United Breeze another MGM production in 2018.

How Would That Stack Up
Now, let's look at some relatively recent R rated biggie releases for comps. "Deadpool 2" debuted with $125 million in 2018 on its way to $785 million worldwide (per The Numbers). Then again, more recently, "Joker" debuted with $96 million and topped out at $1.072 billion worldwide, both without China. A comedy comp would be Bad Boys for Life in 2020, which debuted to $68 million and legged out to $424.6 million worldwide including $204.4 million domestically. However, unlike those releases excluding "Bad Boys for Life", it is also getting a China release and buoyed by the success of the re-release could help it's gross although China is currently experiencing another wave of COVID-19, which can hurt it.

Lookin specifically into the "Joker" box office and how it made $1 billion worldwide, would be out of reach and unlikely unless it receives good buzz around it. However, the real questions are, Can it overperform? Will be it successful despite it's 25 year dormancy? Can it's success prove that R rated toons can be successful? Will it be enough for MGM? These are the big questions.

"Detective Carl Returns" cast also includes Ving Rhames as Officer Barry Johnson, Wesley Snipes as Caine Brown Jr, Johnny Depp as Corporal Grant Cross, Robin Wright as Mary Jenkins, Alex Wolff as Carl "CJ" Jenkins Jr., Lucas Till as Jeremy Heinken, Meg Ryan as Linda Heinken, Bruce Dern as Walter Jenkins, Bette Midler as Willow Jenkins, Ice Cube as Stephen Hill, Ryan Reynolds as Austin Jenkins, and Sam Rockwell as Denzel Brown.

"Detective Carl Returns" hits theaters on January 13, 2023.