With ‘Jurassic World 3,’ dinosaurs rule again at box office

Move over Maverick, the dinosaurs have arrived to claim their throne. 

“Jurassic World: Dominion” took a mighty bite out of the box office with $143.4 million in North American ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. Including earnings from international showings — the film opened in various markets last weekend — “Jurassic World: Dominion,” released globally by Universal Pictures, has already grossed $389 million. And it’s just getting started. 

“We couldn’t be happier,” said Jim Orr, Universal’s head of domestic distribution. “‘Jurassic World: Dominion’ had a very broad and ridiculously enthusiastic audience.”

The hefty haul is yet another sign that the box office is continuing to rebound this summer. With the blockbuster successes of films like “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” “Top Gun: Maverick” and now “Jurassic World 3,” audiences are coming back to movie theaters more consistently.

The film, which had a reported $185 million price tag not accounting for marketing and promotion costs, opened on 4,676 screens in the U.S. and Canada, starting with preview showings Thursday. Audiences were 56% male and 54% over the age of 25, according to Universal.

Critics were not kind to the dino extravaganza, but audiences seem to be enjoying themselves based on exit polls. Moviegoers gave it an A- CinemaScore and an 81% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, suggesting that word of mouth will be strong in the coming weeks.