The box office smiles on the Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes

We don’t know what the exact GDP of the Kingdom Of The Planet Apes is—let alone its various imports, exports, and stances on inter-primate tariffs—but its economic fortunes are certainly looking rosy this weekend: Variety reports that the film, directed by Maze Runner escapee Wes Ball, is on track to make at least $52 million in its opening week in theater, putting it right in line with previous installments in the well-performing franchise.

That also makes it the winner at the box office this weekend, and the first film to break the $50 million opening weekend mark since March’s Godzilla x Kong and Kung Fu Panda 4. Ball’s new Apes film—the fourth in the revived version of the classic film series that kicked off with 2011's Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes—pulled in $22.2 million on its opening night alone, allowing it to far outpace second-place finisher The Fall Guy, which continues to limp toward dreams of making back its hefty $125 million budget, reportedly set to reach $50 million domestic, total, before the weekend is out.

Meanwhile, Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers continues to motor along in third place, adding another $5 million to its totals, and horror movie Tarot will land at fourth, adding another $3.2 million to its total.

Of course, all of these films are facing distant storm clouds on the horizon—or is that just the dust clouds kicked up by a series of high-impact, gorgeously shot car chases? After all, we’re just four days out from the release of George Miller’s Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, which is expected to come roaring into theaters with all its attendant fury, chrome, glory, etc. next week.