"How to Train Your Dragons 2" is in theaters this weekend and it needs to be a big hit for DreamWorks Animation.
The studio has taken write-downs on three of its last four movies and has said it needs every movie going forward to be a hit in order to be successful.
That shouldn't be a problem with since the series about a Viking teen, Hiccup, and his dragon is the company's most popular property right now and has the potential to be its most profitable. (DWA believes in it so much that CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg mentioned a third movie back in 2010.)
The "How to Train Your Dragons" sequel is expected to make north of $55 million opening weekend; however, it faces steep competition from "22 Jump Street" starring Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum. Estimates have that film bringing in closer to $60 million.
$55 million would be a better start than the original film which debuted to $43.7 million, but it wouldn't come anywhere close to one of the best openings for a DreamWorks Animation movie.
The three "Shrek" sequels all opened to more than $70 million, after that two "Madagascar" sequels have made more than $60 million. "How to Train Your Dragons 2" could certainly make more than $55 million, but it's not often that you have two movies opening weekend that both perform above $50 million.
Both new films also have a lot of competition from still popular movies "The Fault in Our Stars," Disney's "Maleficent," and Tom Cruise's "Edge of Tomorrow."
The first "How to Train Your Dragons" film went on to make $494.9 million at theaters.
DWA's last successful film, "The Croods," brought in $587 million worldwide. That movie was a new original property for the studio.
DreamWorks Animation is at least expecting this movie to clear $500 million, if not surpass that of "The Croods." Every single sequel DWA has put out to date has cleared at least $600 million.
Here's how the studio's sequels have fared at theaters:
| Movie | Opening Weekend | Worldwide | Budget |
| "Shrek 2" (2004) | $108 million | $919.8 million | $150 million |
| "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" (2008) | $63.1 million | $603 million | $150 million |
| "Kung Fu Panda 2" (2011) | $47.7 million | $665.7 million | $150 million |
SEE ALSO: Why DreamWorks Animation keeps failing and how it plans to bounce back
