Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Preview Night Numbers Off to Strong Start

The opening weekend for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice — currently projected at around $90 million — is looking strong so far, with over $13 million earned at preview screenings last night. The movie, which has been earning rave reviews from audiences via exit surveys performed by ComScore, is a sequel 36 years in the making, bringing in a new generation of the Deetz family for an all new adventure through the afterlife. Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, and Winona Ryder all return to reprise their roles from the first Beetlejuice, with director Tim Burton returning as well. The original movie made just $75 million at the box office, but went on to be considered a modern comedy classic.

Beetlejuice, made for a reported $15 million budget, made that much in just three weeks back in 2013 on DVD, according to The Numbers. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice cost more like $100 million to make — suggesting a high degree of confidence in the sequel by Warner Bros.

Disney got bit by that kind of thing last year, when they spent somewhere between $295 million and $387 million to make an Indiana Jones movie that ended up earning just $384 million at the box office. When you account for marketing, that means the movie would have had to make around $600 million to break even — something that none of the four previous Indiana Jones movies had come remotely close to doing.

In the case of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, that number is likely closer to $250 million — a number that seems pretty attainable when you consider that some analysts have predicted it could make as much as $125 million this weekend in North America alone. Comedies don’t tend to travel especially well overseas, but given the franchise power of Beetlejuice, it would not be surprising to see a pretty strong response from around the globe.

Here’s the official synopsis for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice:

“Beetlejuice is back! After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic, and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it’s only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice’s name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.” 

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is in theaters now.