Angelina Jolie-starrer Maleficent: Mistress of Evil should have no trouble casting a winning spell at the weekend box office, toppling early October blockbuster Joker from the top spot. The live-action Disney pic, rated PG, is on course to earn $45 million to $50 million in its domestic debut, and north of $140 million globally. The follow-up opens five years after Maleficent — inspired by the villainous sorceress in Sleeping Beauty — launched with $69.4 million in North America on its way to earning $758 million globally. Maleficent 2 was originally set to open in May 2020, but Disney moved the release closer to the Halloween 2019 corridor.

Directed by Joachim Ronning from a script by Linda Woolverton, Noah Harpster and Micah Fitzerman-Blue, the sequel follows Maleficent and her goddaughter Aurora (Elle Fanning) as they question the ties that bind them together on the eve of the latter's nuptials. Todd Phillips and Warner Bros.' Joker, a water-cooler sensation, could earn more than $25 million in its third weekend, putting it in a close race for No. 2 with new entry Zombieland 2: Double Tap, from Sony. (Through Sunday, Joker's gross will be north of $700 million worldwide, putting it on course to become the top-grossing R-rated title of all time, not adjusted for inflation.) And thanks to The Addams Family, which debuted last weekend to a better-than-expected $30.3 million, Maleficent 2 and Zombieland 2, the Halloween box office is underway in earnest ahead of the actual holiday.