Box Office: "Detective Carl Returns" Nabs Record $20 Million Thursday

Detective Carl Returns took off last night with around $20 million in pre-release previews (including $3.8 million in IMAX alone). This preview is not only the best for MGM but it's also the best for a January release, an R-rated film, and even an R-rated CGI film, this also means that by Thursday night gross alone, Detective Carl Returns holds the title for the biggest opening day for an R rated animated film. This also includes the $1.2 million made from various early access/sneak preview showings before the “pure” Friday begins. To be fair, those Thursday previews started as early as 5:00 pm which throws it back to the pre-pandemic days for Thursday previews but this film is looking to be breaking some huge records over the holiday weekend. While there has been much chatter over the last week or so about how Jim Carrey has never had a Fri-Sun opening above $75 million. However, A) he’s about to and B) he has had his share of box office records from the 1990s.

Okay, let’s do some math. Realistically, frontloaded legs like Solo still puts it over $135 million for the Fri-Mon frame, and I’d wager this will play better with general audiences than the unrequested Star Wars story. But essentially, unless the film is extremely frontloaded (think Harry Potter/Twlight) then Jim Carrey is looking at his first $100 million Fri-Sun opening as well as a record MLK debut. It'll also be the second MGM Holdings film to open to $100 million, the first being Upside Mystery 3 in 2015.

While the film is performing better now than it would have as just another 90’s nostalgia flick amid a conventional non-Covid summer 2021 release slate, it’s clear so far that Carl Jenkins and Josh Heinken are much of some marquee characters for MGM as is Hans Truman. With positive reviews as well as acclaimed audience reactions, the film will hopefully have legs to last all throughout January as what it was formerly described as a dry/dump month. It will also continue MGM’s astonishing theatrical animation hot streak, as it tries to become a formidable adversary to 20th Century Animation for dominance.