'Finding Dory' swimming for record $140 million opening

Giving a much-needed jolt to the summer box office, 'Finding Dory' is dominating moviegoing with a record-breaking $140 million opening weekend, estimates showed Saturday.

Disney/Pixar's animated sequel, playing in 4,305 North American theaters, grossed a stunning $55 million on its opening day Friday.

'Finding Dory' will finish the frame with four times the total of action-comedy 'Central Intelligence,' starring Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart, which is launching with a solid $34 million at 3,508 sites this weekend.

'Dory' will demolish the nine-year-old record for best domestic animated opening, set by 'Shrek the Third' in 2007 with $121.6 million. 'Minions' was the second largest at $115.7 million, followed by Disney/Pixar's 'Toy Story 3' with $110 million.

At $140 million, 'Dory' will rank as the 17th largest domestic opener of all time and the third largest of 2016. Marvel/Disney's 'Captain America: Civil War' had the year's highest-grossing launch so far with $179 million, the fifth-largest debut of all time.

Recent estimates had placed the opening weekend for 'Dory,' with Ellen DeGeneres voicing the forgetful tropical fish, in the $115 million range. So its apparent over-performance is a tonic to the movie business - which has slumped 18 percent during the summer season in the wake of  expensive tentpoles such as 'Warcraft,' 'Alice Through the Looking Glass' and 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows' delivering drab domestic returns.

Early indications show that Disney has a blockbuster that may perform as well as 2003's original 'Finding Nemo,' the fish tale of a father looking for his son, which grossed $936.7 million globally and won the Academy Award for best animated feature.

'Finding Dory' will double the $70 million opening weekend of 'Finding Nemo.'

The sequel includes original director Andrew Stanton with DeGeneres returning to voice Dory along with Albert Brooks voicing her friend Marlin. Stanton's co-director Angus MacLane is making his filmmaking debut.

The new story centers on Dory scouring the ocean in search of her long-lost parents. Disney did not provide a budget, but Pixar films typically carry price tags between $175 million and $200 million.

'Finding Dory' is enjoying a 95 percent 'fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Online ticket service Fandango reported this week that "Finding Dory" had become its top pre-selling animated movie ever. DeGeneres has been celebrating the movie this week on her TV talk show with 'Finding Dory Week.'

'Central Intelligence' is also making a sturdy debut with a $13 million opening day on Friday. Johnson and Hart are paired for the first time, playing high school friends who have become a crack CIA agent and an accountant.

New Line is handling the release domestically and Universal will handle it internationally, with the studios co-financing the $50 million film. 'Central Intelligence' reviews have been mostly positive with a 67 percent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

New Line's second weekend of 'The Conjuring 2' should finish a strong third with $20 million following its $40.4 million launch last weekend. The moderately priced horror sequel will finish the weekend with around $76 million domestically.

Lionsgate's second weekend of 'Now You See Me 2' is headed for a fourth-place finish with about $9 million, down 59 percent. Universal/Legendary's 'Warcraft' will follow follow in fifth with about $5.9 million - a plunge of 76 percent from its launch weekend.

By contrast, 'Warcraft' has shown plenty of box office power outside the U.S. with about $280 million, including an impressive $156 million in China.

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