The Next #1

Except it's really about the toys, friends and neighbors!

Diz Co. appears to have another strong opening on its immediate horizon:

Cars 3 is projected to gross $55 million or more in its North American debut this weekend, enough to finish No. 1 and beat blockbuster Wonder Woman, now in its third weekend.

The first two Cars films together have earned north of $1 billion at the global box office — in addition to spawning a merchandising bonanza for Disney and Pixar. ...

If you look at the Cars franchise from a box office angle, the features are dim stars in the Pixar movie universe. Out of 17 releases, Cars Uno sits at #10, grossing a mild $244,082,982 in the U.S. and Canada.

Cars 2 idles at #16, just above The Good Dinosaur. Its domestic box office was $191,452,396.

But for this particular franchise, box office grosses are beside the point. Disney sells tons of Cars merchandise, so if the pictures don't rocket into high orbit, well, the Mouse still has enough toys flying off shelves to keep regiments of corporate accountants busy counting the cash.