Title: "Despicable Me 4 Set to Dominate Box Office with Anticipated $100 Million Opening"

The highly anticipated animated film "Despicable Me 4" is gearing up for a massive box office success during the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Industry experts predict that the latest installment in the beloved franchise will bring in an impressive $100 million to $125 million over the five-day frame.

Taking advantage of the holiday festivities, "Despicable Me 4" will hit theaters on Wednesday, giving it a head start in the race for box office supremacy. However, although it is expected to tower over the domestic charts, it is unlikely to surpass the opening record held by Disney and Pixar's "Inside Out 2," which earned an impressive $154 million over three days earlier in the year.

Despite this, the "Inside Out" sequel recently became the first film released in 2024 to cross the $1 billion mark, and is also the fastest animated movie to achieve this milestone. With "Despicable Me 4" poised for a strong opening, the film is sure to inject some much-needed energy into the summer box office.

The "Despicable Me" franchise has become synonymous with the Independence Day holiday weekend at the box office. The previous entry, "Minions: The Rise of Gru," which was released in 2022, set a new record for the highest film debut over Independence Day, raking in an impressive $123 million over five days. Ultimately, it collected a staggering $940 million worldwide.

Looking back at its predecessors, "Despicable Me 3" opened to $99 million in 2017, "Despicable Me 2" brought in $83.5 million in 2013, and the original "Despicable Me" kicked off the franchise with a solid $56 million in 2010. Clearly, the lovable Minions and their hilarious escapades continue to captivate audiences year after year.

Directed by Chris Renaud and co-directed by Patrick Delage, "Despicable Me 4" reunites the talented voice cast including Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, and Miranda Cosgrove, promising more mischief and mayhem from the Minions. The story follows reformed supervillain Gru, whose life takes a chaotic turn when he welcomes a mischievous son into his family and a vengeful criminal mastermind escapes from prison.

While reviews for the film have been mixed (with a 63% rating on Rotten Tomatoes), critical sentiment rarely affects the box office performance of this billion-dollar franchise. Audiences around the globe cannot wait to join Gru and his yellow henchmen on their latest adventure.

In addition to "Despicable Me 4," moviegoers can also look forward to A24's slasher threequel "MaXXXine" hitting theaters over the traditional three-day weekend. Starring Mia Goth as an aspiring Hollywood starlet in the 1980s, the film follows her terrifying encounter with a killer known as the Night Stalker. Although projections suggest a modest opening for "MaXXXine," fans of the horror genre will surely get a thrill from this latest installment in the trilogy.

As summer rolls on, the domestic box office is gaining momentum and attracting audiences back to movie theaters. With promising releases such as "Twisters" on July 19 and "Deadpool & Wolverine" on July 26, the bounce-back is expected to continue, ensuring an exciting season for film enthusiasts and industry insiders alike.