‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ Has Worst Opening Day in Franchise History

Audiences might not be that eager to learn The Secrets of Dumbledore.

Last night’s Thursday previews of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore drew the smallest crowds in the Harry Potter prequel series to date. According to Deadline, the film grossed $6 million in U.S. theaters, well behind both of the two previous Fantastic Beasts. The first grossed $8.7 million on the Thursday before its official opening day in 2016, while the sequel, The Crimes of Grindelwald, made $7.3 during its Thursday previews in 2018, and another $1.8 million in additional previews.

Most experts predict The Secrets of Dumbledore will gross around $40 million for its full opening weekend; that would be a record low for the franchise too. (The first Fantastic Beasts made $74.4 million in its opening weekend; The Crimes of Grindelwald grossed $62.1 million.

It goes without saying, but none of the Fantastic Beasts films have done as well in theaters as the original Harry Potter saga. Here are some comparisons of their Thursday previews, via The Numbers:

• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – $22 million
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – $18.3 million
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – $12.4 million
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – $12.3 million
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 – $11.4 million
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – $11.2 million
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – $8.7 million
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald – $7.3 million
• Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore – $6 million

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore cost a reported $200 million to make and has suffered through numerous behind-the-scenes controversies, from the recasting of Johnny Depp’s role as the series’ lead villain to co-star Ezra Miller’s recent arrest for disorderly conduct. Warner Bros. planned to make five total movies in the Beasts series, but if Dumbledore does even worse than Grindelwald, which did significantly worse than the first Beasts, one wonders how long that plan will remain intact.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is now playing in theaters around the country.

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