‘The Little Mermaid’ Tops $10M In Previews, $120M Opening Weekend Predicted

By Brent Furdyk. Published: 26 May 2023 4:08 PM

Halle Bailey as Ariel in Disney's live-action THE LITTLE MERMAID. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2023 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

“The Little Mermaid” is poised to swim upstream at the box office.

According to TheWrap, Disney’s live-action remake of its 1989 animated hit is poised to hit nine digits by the end of its opening weekend.

Having raked in more than $10 million during Thursday night previews ahead of its official launch during the U.S. Memorial Day weekend, the anticipated film is projected to earn in excess of $100 million after its opening weekend.

Meanwhile, Variety reports that the film’s four-day total is expected to be somewhere in the range of $120 million to $125 million.

While those may seem like big numbers, they pale in comparison from earlier Disney remakes.

For comparison’s sake, Disney’s 2019 live-action remake of “The Lion King” boasted a $191 million opening weekend, and went on to earn more than $1 billion globally, while “Aladdin” took in $117 million over the four-day Memorial Day weekend in 2019, and surpassed $1 billion.