Despicable Me 2 arrived in theaters over the holiday weekend and wiped out the competition tallying $143.1 million over five days (7/3-7/7) at the domestic box office. It added another $151 million from the foreign box office for a worldwide total of $294.2 million.
But how did Gru and the Minions do in terms of a regular domestic three-day, Friday-through-Sunday release for animated movies?
We took a look back at the top 30 best domestic opening weekends for animated movies and while Despicable Me 2 performed well, it didn't claim a spot in the top three opening weekends of all time. So who topped them? A large, green ogre and a cowboy named Woody.
Here are the top 30 domestic opening weekends for animated movies over a Friday-Sunday span. Stats are courtesy of BoxOfficeMojo.
30. Ice Age
29. Ice Age: Continental Drift
28. Ratatouille
27. Madagascar
26. Shark Tale
25. Kung Fu Panda 2
24. Tangled
23. Wreck-It Ralph
22. Despicable Me
21. Monsters vs. Aliens
20. Cars
19. Kung Fu Panda
18. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted
17. Monsters, Inc.
16. WALL-E
15. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
14. Cars 2
13. Brave
12. Ice Age: The Meltdown
11. Up
10. Dr. Seuss' The Lorax
9. Finding Nemo
8. The Incredibles
7. Shrek Forever After
6. The Simpsons Movie
5. Monsters University
4. Despicable Me 2
3. Shrek 2
2. Toy Story 3
1. Shrek the Third
When all is said and done, Despicable Me 2 should land somewhere in the top 10 for domestic animated releases. The first Despicable Me sits at 10th with $251.5 million domestic and $543.1 million worldwide.
Are there any surprises on this list? Any movies that you thought would make it? Any favorites in the top 30? Comment below!
Related: Top 25 Biggest Movie Openings in the History of July
Hit up Fandango’s Summer of Action special section for tickets, offers and more!
