Jurassic World Dominion is starting to roar into theaters across the country, pulling in an estimated $18 million from its Thursday preview screenings. It's a respectable haul for the latest film in the Jurassic Park franchise, which carries with it both good and bad news. The good news is that the previews for Dominion are higher than its predecessor Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, which earned $15.3 million from its previews in 2018. However, the preview numbers for Dominion are lower than many notable 2022 blockbusters, including Top Gun: Maverick ($19.3M), The Batman ($21.6M), and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($36M).
Despite having a softer preview period than its contemporary 2022 films, Dominion is still projected to open around $125 million domestically. That number would be comparable to the three-day opening weekend of Maverick, which benefited from a significant boost from the Memorial Day holiday. The four-day total for Maverick ended up being north of $160 million, a mark which it doesn't seem like Dominion will be able to hit. Maverick was also helped by a stellar critical reception, something that Dominion doesn't have. The "Epic Conclusion of the Jurassic Era" is currently sitting at a dismal 33% on Rotten Tomatoes, but has a much better 79% audience score. Critic reviews aren't the end all be all for a film's success, but poor word-of-mouth could sink the box office returns for Dominion.
Dominion Projected to Have Lowest Opening Weekend of Jurassic World Franchise
If Dominion opens around $125 million, then it would be the lowest debut weekend for any film in the Jurassic World series. Shockingly enough, the original Jurassic Park film actually had the smallest premiere out of the entire six-picture saga, pulling in just over $50 million in 1993. However, Jurassic Park quickly turned into a box office sensation, becoming the highest-grossing film of the year with more than $400 million. Dominion should be able to beat out all the Jurassic Park films, but finishing third out of the Jurassic World portion of the franchise is a clear sign of diminishing returns. After Jurassic World opened to more than $200 million in 2015, Fallen Kingdom dipped to $148 million three years later. Another drop for Dominion could prove that it's the right time to put the dinosaurs on ice for a little while.
Both Jurassic World films ended up surpassing $400 million domestically, but it may be tough for Dominion to hit that mark. Maverick has been dominating the domestic marketplace, and even though it will be losing some screens this weekend, the Top Gun sequel will still eat into Dominion's opening weekend potential. The summer season only gets more competitive from there, with Lightyear, Elvis, Minions: The Rise of Gru, and Thor: Love and Thunder all hitting theaters over the next few weeks. If Dominion doesn't connect with audiences in its opening weekend, it may get swallowed up by all the other blockbusters coming out this summer.