The Weekend Forecast: Furious 7

In which I predict that big winners (and losers) at the box office this weekend.

Welcome to the first installment of The Weekend Forecast!  This is going to be the other half of what was just The Weekend Report: an article series dedicated to letting you know what knew movies are coming out this weekend, what's expected to do well and what looks like it'll be worth your time to see.  And because it's not tagged onto the end of The Weekend Report anymore, I have more time to devote to this particular aspect of the latest cinematic happenings.

It goes without saying that Furious 7 is going to make an absurd amount of money this weekend.  The current projections have it making upwards of $115 million.  This makes it the largest opening of any 2015 movie, the largest opening of any Fast and Furious movie and the largest opening for any movie in April ever.

It's expected to make even more money overseas: enough to bring its global total for the weekend to over $250 million.  These numbers would shatter the previous April record holder, Captain America: The Winter Solder, which opened last year with $95 million domestically

While this unprecedented box office take is undoubtedly fueled by Paul Walker's tragic death midway through the film's production, that's not to say that the movie's not worthwhile in of itself.  Although I have yet to see it, word on the street is that it's the best film in the series and that it can be easily followed by people who haven't invested their time in watching the other six.

And that's really all that there is, too.  There is no other big release that can challenge Furious 7's box office dominance.  It's going to steamroll all of the previous box office winners that are still in theaters, including Insurgent, Get Hard, Home and Cinderella.

Coming out in a limited release (and nowhere near me) is The Woman in Gold: where Ryan Reynolds plays a lawyer who takes the Austrian government to court in order to help a woman regain a portrait of her aunt that was stolen from her by Nazis.  It admittedly seems like a pretty typical early-year drama, but with a fun enough cast to make it worthwhile.  Becky is especially keen to see this ASAP.

So what new movie are you planning on seeing this weekend?  Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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