Can Star Trek Beyond Beat Ice Age 5 at the Box Office?

Animated movies seem to be more successful than ever at the box office, with these movies representing four of the top 10 movies this year (Finding Dory,Zootopia,The Secret Life of PetsandKung Fu Panda 3). However, this may be the rare weekend where a highly-anticipatedanimated moviedoesn’t come out on top, with two-time winnerThe Secret Life of Petsgoing up against 20th Century Fox’sIce Age: Collision Course, Paramount’sStar Trek Beyondand Warner Bros.' horror-thrillerLights Outin wide release this weekend. If our projections are accurate,Star Trek Beyondshould have no trouble coming out on top this weekend.

Box Office Mojoreveals thatIce Age 5has the advantage when it comes to theater count, debuting this weekend in approximately 3,900 theaters, with theStar Treksequel opening in roughly 3,500 theaters andLights Outdebuting in 2,900 theaters. Despite its theater count advantage, bothStar Trek BeyondandLights Outare bona fide critical hits, whileIce Age 5is the complete opposite.Star Trek Beyondhas amassed an impressive 91% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with 32 positive reviews out of 35, whileLights Outhas a perfect 100%, with 13 glowing reviews and zero negative reviews thus far. The fifthIce Agemovie currently has a 15% score, with just six positive reviews out of 39. We’re predicting thatStar Trek Beyondwill easily take the top spot with $71.5 million.

IfStar Trek Beyondhits this mark in theaters this weekend, it will fall just short of 2009’sStar Trek, which opened with $75.2 million, en route to $257.7 million domestic, but it will debut just ahead of 2013’sStar Trek Into Darkness' $70.1 million opening weekend, en route to $228.7 million domestic. Theearly reactionsto this sci-fi sequel were incredible positive, with most critics and fans agreeing that this new movie is much better than the divisiveStar Trek Into Darkness, which will likely translate into this sequel faring slightly better than its predecessor on opening weekend.

Star Trek Beyond, the highly anticipated next installment in the globally popularStar Trekfranchise, created byGene Roddenberryand reintroduced byJ.J. Abramsin 2009, returns with directorJustin Lin(The Fast and the Furiousfranchise) at the helm of this epic voyage of theU.S.S. Enterpriseand her intrepid crew. In “Beyond,” the Enterprise crew explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a mysterious new enemy who puts them and everything the Federation stands for to the test.

Ice Age: Collision Courseis set to take second place with an estimated $31.4 million, which would represent the lowest debut in the animated franchise’s history. Scrat’s epic pursuit of the elusive acorn catapults him into the universe where he accidentally sets off a series of cosmic events that transform and threaten the Ice Age World. To save themselves, Sid, Manny, Diego, and the rest of the herd must leave their home and embark on a quest full of comedy and adventure, traveling to exotic new lands and encountering a host of colorful new characters.

The top five will be rounded out by holdoversThe Secret Life of Pets($24.6 million),Ghostbusters($23.8 million) and the new horror thrillerLights Outwith $12.5 million. From producerJames Wan(The Conjuring) comes a tale of an unknown terror that lurks in the dark. When Rebecca left home, she thought she left her childhood fears behind. Growing up, she was never really sure of what was and wasn’t real when the lights went out…and now her little brother, Martin, is experiencing the same unexplained and terrifying events that had once tested her sanity and threatened her safety. A frightening entity with a mysterious attachment to their mother, Sophie, has reemerged. But this time, as Rebecca gets closer to unlocking the truth, there is no denying that all their lives are in danger…once the lights go out.

The top 10 will likely be rounded out byFinding Dory($6 million),The Legend of Tarzan($5.6 million),Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates($4.8 million),The Purge: Anarchy($3.2 million) andThe Infiltrator($2.3 million). Also opening in limited release is Fox Searchlight’sAbsolutely Fabulous: The Movie, Mirror Images Ltd.‘sBeta Test, The Film Arcade’sDon’t Think Twice, Reliance Big Pictures’Madaari, Strand’sSummertimeand Well Go USA’sTrain to Busan. Fox Searchlight will releaseAbsolutely Fabulousin roughly 250 theaters, whileBeta Testis slated to open in 18 theaters, but we don’t have theater count data for the rest of these limited release titles.

Looking ahead to next weekend, Universal Pictures will debut the long-awaitedJason Bournein theaters, alongside STX Entertainment’sBad Momsand Lionsgate’sNerve, which debuts Wednesday, July 27. Also opening in limited release is Sony Pictures Classics’Equity, A24’sInto the Forest, IFC’sThe Land, Dimension Films’Viraland Open Road Films’ documentaryGleason. Be sure to check back on Sunday for the top 10 estimates and again on Tuesday for the next wave of predictions. Until then, check out our predictions for the weekend of July 22 below.