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Secret Life of Pets dethrones Dory, dominates at the box office

<p>Want a box office hit this summer? Well, I'd suggest finding some famous people to voice some animal characters for a couple of hours. </p><p>Taking the No. 1 spot in dominating fashion is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWI_Jsw9qUs" target="_blank">"The Secret Life of Pets,"</a> bringing in an <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/" target="_blank">estimated $103 million</a> in its opening weekend. That's about $80 million better than this weekend's No. 2 movie and $40 million better than <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2016/07/10/media/the-secret-life-of-pets-box-office/" target="_blank">analysts predicted.</a></p><p>In a world where sequels, comic heroes and novel adaptations rule the box office, a movie not based on established material is a rarity — which makes "The Secret of Life of Pets" a particularly noteworthy success.  </p><p>"The Secret Life of Pets" is pretty far down the list of best openings ever — <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/weekends/" target="_blank">at No. 35 domestically</a>. But if you take away all the films based on comic heroes, sequels or novel adaptations, this is actually the best opening in modern film history. </p><p><b>SEE MORE: </b><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/star-trek-gets-its-first-openly-gay-major-character/" target="_blank"><b>'Star Trek' Gets Its First Openly Gay Major Character</b></a></p><p>Oddly enough, the next best opening for an "original idea" film is another animated flick. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIDYqBMFzfg" target="_blank">"Inside Out"</a> brought in <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=pixar2014.htm" target="_blank">more than $90 million</a> in its opening weekend.</p><p>Taking the No. 2 spot is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqlXYRVgUik&list=PLVfin74Qx3tVwyPZMFT0UGeeiqgpwvguc&index=12" target="_blank">"The Legend of Tarzan,"</a> bringing in <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=tarzan2016.htm" target="_blank">about $20.6 million</a> in its second weekend. With a $135 million worldwide total, Tarzan and Jane still have a ways to go to make up for the flick's blockbuster budget, but it had a strong weekend showing nonetheless. </p><p>Despite eight nationwide releases and four weeks in theaters, Dory will not let go of her spot in the top three. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKJA-VLpiCo" target="_blank">Pixar's latest</a> brought in <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=pixar2015.htm" target="_blank">$20.3 million</a> this weekend, pushing its domestic total to just over $422 million.</p><p>That's the best domestic total this year — better than <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIM1HydF9UA" target="_blank">"Deadpool,"</a> "The Jungle Book" and even "Captain America: Civil War." </p><p>But it still has to catch "The Lion King" and "Shrek 2" to earn <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/genres/chart/?id=animation.htm&sort=gross&order=DESC&p=.htm" target="_blank">best animated film ever</a> honors. As for next week, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwqVioNsdqs" target="_blank">who ya gonna call?</a></p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/top-3-reality-tv-shows-we-learned-about-this-week/">Top 3 Reality TV Shows We Learned About This Week</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/he-s-no-gloria-estefan-but-apparently-chris-brown-is-huge-in-cuba/">He's No Gloria Estefan — But Apparently Chris Brown Is Huge In Cuba</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/2-months-after-drake-s-latest-views-is-still-breaking-records/">2 Months After Drake's Latest, 'Views' Is Still Breaking Records</a></li></ul>
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — It's a good time for animated animals at the box office. "The Secret Life of Pets" follows "Zootopia" and "Finding Dory" as the latest success this year, opening to a massive $103.2 million according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures film cost only $75 million to produce, and it features the voices of comedians like Louis C.K. and Kevin Hart. "Pets" has been warmly received by critics and audiences, who gave the film a promising A- CinemaScore.

Going into the weekend, analysts predicted it would earn only around $70 million, which would still have been a big success.

Not adjusting for inflation, "Pets" earned the title of best opening ever for an original animated property. The previous record-holder was Disney and Pixar's "Inside Out," which opened to $90.4 million last year.

It's a big moment for Illumination Entertainment — the shop behind the hugely successful "Despicable Me" series and "Minions." The company is not quite Pixar yet, but it's working toward that sort of recognition.

"Illumination has been building a consistency of vision, and now they have become what every studio covets — a draw," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box office tracker comScore. "They're building that brand reputation with every movie."

The main draw, though, was likely in the simple and appealing premise: What do your pets do when you're not around?

"I think this movie resonates among all people," said Nick Carpou, Universal's president of domestic distribution. "It's a very charming way in for everyone to have fun with the concept of imagining their pets that way."

"Pets" effectively unseated "Finding Dory" from its three-week run in first place. The little blue fish actually fell to third place with $20.4 million, behind "The Legend of Tarzan" which took in $20.6 million in its second weekend in theaters.

Even with the drop, "Dory" this weekend surpassed "Captain America: Civil War" to become the top film of 2016 domestically, with its $423 million in grosses. It helped push The Walt Disney Studios to reach $5 billion globally in record time. Much of that was propelled by the success of its family fare including "The Jungle Book."

"Family films have generated so much money this year," Dergarabedian said. "That's an audience who is always looking for content in a world filled with options for entertainment."

While Disney is celebrating its overall box office, there is one dud on the books. The studio's "The BFG" fell a giant 60 percent in its second weekend. The movie, which cost around $140 million to make, has earned a dismal $38.7 million to date.

There were also a fair number of adults looking for something new to see this weekend without the kids, helping the raunchy R-rated comedy "Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates" surpass expectations with an estimated $16.6 million for a fourth-place debut. The film, distributed by 20th Century Fox, cost $33 million to make, and stars Zac Efron, Adam Devine, Aubrey Plaza and Anna Kendrick.

"The Purge: Election Year" rounded out the top five with $11.7 million.

The year is still up 3 percent from last summer, despite a string of underperformers lately. But there are still some would-be blockbusters on the horizon, including the new "Ghostbusters," which opens next weekend.

"The hope is that the momentum created by 'The Secret Life of Pets' will carry over to 'Ghostbusters,' 'Jason Bourne' and 'Suicide Squad,'" Dergarbedian said. "We're running out of track. It's almost the end of summer, and there's a lot of ground to make up, but one movie can make all the difference."

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to comScore. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.