The horror pic opened everywhere on July Fourth to get a jump on 'Ant-Man and the Wasp,' which begins its assault Thursday night.

Universal and Blumhouse's The First Purge set off fireworks at the July Fourth box office with an opening day of $9.3 million. The dystopian horror pic opened on Independence Day to get a jump on Ant-Man and the Wasp. Overall, it was a good day at the box office, considering July Fourth isn't always a great day for moviegoing (the heat wave on the East Coast likely helped this year). Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, also from Universal, stayed No. 1 with $11.5 million for a domestic total of $297.6 million (the dinos will stomp past $300 million today). Disney and Pixar's Incredibles 2 placed No. 2 with $9.6 million for a North American cume of $468.2 million. The First Purge followed in third place.

Overall, box-office revenue clocked in at $43.5 million on Wednesday, a whopping 29 percent uptick over Independence Day in 2017 and the best showing since 2013, according to comScore. Marking the fourth installment in the successful horror franchise, The First Purge is targeting a $25 million-$30 million Wednesday-Sunday launch, although Wednesday's number suggests it will finish at the higher end of that range. Wednesday's haul included $2.5 million in Tuesday-night previews. Platinum Dunes is also a producer on the series. In July 2016, The Purge: Election Year debuted to $31.5 million after earning $3.6 million in Thursday-night previews (that film opened on a Friday).