Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 Projected for Big Opening Weekend

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is warping into theaters riding a massive amount of anticipation and buzz. As with any Marvel Cinematic Universe movie release, the expectations for a successful opening have only increased in conjunction with the big earnings of preceding films, such as Doctor Strange, Avengers 2, and of course, the first Guardians of the Galaxy installment.

Deadline has reported that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 will far surpass the opening weekend earnings of Vol. 1 – which isn’t surprising, but still very encouraging as a sign of the excitement surrounding this particular Marvel Studios franchise.

According to the report, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is on track to earn between $140 – 160 million; in terms of opening weekends, that puts Vol. 2 in a wide middleground between Iron Man 2‘s $128 million, and Iron Man 3‘s $174 million. Factoring in the Marvel movies that are released by other studios: Guardians Vol. 2 is projected to earn more than Fox’s Deadpool ($132 opening), but will likely end up somewhere around Sony’s Spider-Man 3 ($151 million).

In short: This is poised to be another big win for Marvel Studios, with positive word of mouth likely to carry it forward.

Set to the backdrop of ‘Awesome Mixtape #2,’ Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 continues the team’s adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favorite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes’ aid as the Marvel cinematic universe continues to expand.

UP NEXT: James Gunn Already Working on GotGv3

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is written and directed by James Gunn (Slither). The film marks the return of the original Guardians, including Chris Pratt (Jurassic World) as Peter Quill/Star-Lord; Zoe Saldana (Star Trek Into Darkness) as Gamora; Dave Bautista (Spectre) as Drax; Vin Diesel (Furious 7) as the voice of Groot; Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) as the voice of Rocket; Michael Rooker (Jumper) as Yondu; Karen Gillan (The Big Short) as Nebula; and Sean Gunn (Gilmore Girls) as Kraglin. New cast members include Pom Klementieff (Oldboy), Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby, Everest), Chris Sullivan (The Knick, The Drop) and Kurt Russell (The Hateful Eight, The Thing).

MORE: GotGv2:

• GotGv2 Official Review
• When Avengers 3 Takes Place in Relation to GotGv2
• Major MCU Cosmic Gharacters in Gotv2
• Post-Credits Scene Explained

Source: USA Today