Box Office: 'Money Monster' Eyes $14M-Plus Debut in U.S.; 'Captain America' Still Rules

Disney dominates overall as 'Captain America: Civil War' and 'The Jungle Book' have a lock on the top two spots; globally, both films are crossing the $800 million mark.

Jodie Foster's financial thriller Money Monster is eyeing a $14 million-$15 million opening in North America after making a splashy debut at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday.

That would put the adult-skewing film at No. 3, behind tentpoles Captain America: Civil War and The Jungle Book. On Friday, Money Monster beat Jungle Book to come in No. 2, earning $5 million, but the latter is expected to pull ahead on Saturday.

Money Monster — reuniting George Clooney and Julia Roberts for the first time since 2004's Ocean's Twelve — cost $27 million to make and is Foster's biggest movie to date as a director. Heading into the weekend, tracking suggested the adult-skewing Sony/TriStar film would earn in the low teens; at this pace, it's coming in slightly ahead of expectations. (Sony was even more conservative, suggesting $10 million.)

Opinion is divided as to whether $14 million-$16 million is a decent showing for the film, considering its high-profile summer berth and cast. It's true that adult dramas have been slow to start at the U.S. box office; last winter, Steven Spielberg's Bridge of Spies opened in the $15 million range, while many of Clooney's recent movies have opened between $11 million and $13 million.

Jack O'Connell also stars in Money Monster, which centers on a TV financial personality (Clooney) who is taken hostage on air by a viewer who followed the talk show host's advice and lost all of his money. Roberts plays the show's producer.

The big monster in the marketplace, of course, is Disney and Marvel Studios' Captain America: Civil War, which is pegged to gross $70 million or more in its second weekend as it prepares to race past the $800 million globally.

Disney's The Jungle Book also remains a formidable force, even in its fifth weekend, and is likewise crossing the $800 million mark at the worldwide box office. Jon Favreau's family film is tipped to come in No. 2 domestically with an projected $16 million-plus weekend, pushing its domestic total past $300 million.

After Money Monster, the weekend's other new player is Greg McLean's supernatural horror film The Darkness, produced by Blumhouse and released by BH Tilt, a relatively new distribution venture designed to target genre fans without having to make a major nationwide marketing spend (Universal is assisting on the movie's distribution).

Kevin Bacon, Radha Mitchell, David Mazouz and Lucy Fry star in the pic, which revolves around a family who visits the Grand Canyon and brings home a supernatural force. The Darkness, set to open in roughly 1,700 locations, is looking at a debut in the $5 million-$5.5 million range for a fourth-place finish. The film grossed $2.3 million on Friday, and earned a C on CinemaScore.

Rounding out the top five is Mother's Day, Garry Marshall's ensemble comedy that stars Roberts opposite Jennifer Aniston, Jason Sudeikis and Kate Hudson. As expected, the movie is looking at a steep drop of 70 percent in its third weekend now that the holiday is over. Through Sunday, the film's domestic total should be $28 million-plus.

May 13, 3 p.m. Updated.

May 14, 7 a.m. Updated.