Light year did well at the box office with $5.2 million in its Thursday previews. At the 4,200 theaters in North America showing the film, it is expected to make between $70 million and $80 million domestically for its opening weekend.

The movie takes the toy story character in his solo film. It follows the adventure movie that inspires the making of the toy Andy eventually adds to his collection along with Woody, Rex, and Mr. Potato Head. This time he is not played by Tim Allen but by Captain America himself, Chris Evans.

Achieving the projected $70-80 million shouldn’t be too difficult for a top Pixar film based on one of the most iconic characters on the studio’s roster. Light year has box office competition with Jurassic World Dominion and Top Gun: Maverick still performing as well.

The other obstacle concerns less the other films than itself. For Light year to succeed at the box office, it must earn enough for its $200 million budget. Other Pixar movies have had budgets like this before, like Toy Story 3 and Finding Dorybut the pandemic is a factor that may hamper the film’s performance to some extent.

Whereas movies are doing better now that the pandemic has lasted long enough for the world to adapt to some extent before releases bombard left and right. Yet now movies like maverick, The Batman, Spider-Man: No Coming Homeand Everything everywhere all at once have proven that success is achievable.

Lightyear takes off at the box office this week

The film will feature Pixar’s first gay kiss, which sparked controversy. It was initially removed, but after employee reaction, it was restored. The film was critically bombarded on sites like IMDB due to the inclusion of a lesbian couple.

With Light year heading to the box office this weekend, you can see Chris Evans’ take on the character. He will be joined by teammates Keke Palmer (Hustlers), Uzo Aduba (Orange is the new black), and Taika Waititi. The film is directed by Angus MacLane (Finding Dory) and written by MacLane, Jason Headley (Ahead), and Matthew Aldrich (coconut).