‘PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie’ Breaks Franchise Box Office Record

Family audiences have been treated to a variety of options at the multiplex recently, with dinosaur-themed films taking center stage alongside Marvel’s biggest hit of the year. This past weekend’s box office showdown was particularly captivating, as two competing prehistoric adventures vied for family attention while ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ maintained its historic run at the top of the domestic charts.

One of the newcomers, Warner Bros.’ ‘The End of Oak Street,’ debuted with an $80 million budget and star power from Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor. In contrast, Paramount’s ‘PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie’ entered the scene with a more modest $39.5 million budget and a dedicated preschool fanbase already familiar with the franchise’s beloved canine heroes.

Despite the budget disparity, ‘PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie‘ delivered an impressive performance. The film earned $7.35 million on its opening day, according to Deadline, setting a franchise record when combined with $1.9 million from Thursday previews. This surpassed both 2021’s original ‘PAW Patrol: The Movie,’ which opened at $4.5 million, and 2023’s ‘PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie,’ which debuted with $6.8 million.

With positive word of mouth gaining momentum throughout opening day, industry estimates suggest the film’s three-day domestic opening weekend could fall between $20 million and $25 million. This projection places it on par with, or even ahead of, ‘The End of Oak Street,’ despite that film’s significantly larger budget and star-studded cast.

The film’s strong reception extended beyond its opening numbers. ‘PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie’ received an A CinemaScore from audiences on opening night, matching the score of ‘The Mighty Movie’ and improving on the A- earned by the franchise’s inaugural film in 2021. Rentrak and Screen Engine PostTrak exit polling also indicated a solid 63% definite recommend rating for the new film.

Internationally, the movie has also performed admirably, raking in over $38 million across approximately 52 overseas markets even before its full domestic weekend figures were finalized. Strong openings in China, France, the UK, and Germany have contributed to this international success, continuing a trend where ‘PAW Patrol’ films have historically outperformed in global markets compared to their domestic totals, a pattern bolstered by the franchise’s merchandising and streaming presence.

‘PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie’s’ success comes during a particularly competitive time for the genre, with ‘The End of Oak Street’ opening the same weekend and ‘The Odyssey’ still performing well in its fifth week of release. Directed by Cal Brunker, the film takes the PAW Patrol pups to a tropical island filled with dinosaurs after their ship encounters a mysterious storm, where they face off against their recurring rival Mayor Humdinger, who threatens to destroy the island’s ecosystem through reckless mining.

Given the success of the previous installment, with ‘The Mighty Movie’ ultimately grossing $205 million worldwide against a $30 million budget, this latest entry seems well-positioned to follow suit if positive word of mouth continues to propel it forward in the coming weeks. With three dinosaur-themed releases now competing for the same family audience, this record-setting opening indicates that the loyalty of the ‘PAW Patrol’ brand remains a significant box office advantage, allowing smaller budgets and franchise familiarity to effectively compete against flashier, star-driven projects.

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