‘Fantastic Beasts’ Knocks ‘Doctor Strange’ From Top Box Office Spot

'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' is number one at the box office right now, taking the top spot from Marvel's 'Doctor Strange'.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Eddie Redmayne Harry Potter

After enjoying two full weeks of being number one at the box office, Doctor Strange has been replaced by J.K. Rowling’s latest foray into the magical world. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is now holding the top spot at the box office after having grossed $29.7 million on Friday alone.

The film, which opened at over 4,000 theaters across the U.S., has cast its spell over moviegoers. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is set to rake in an estimated $76 million once the weekend is through. However, in comparing the new world of Newt Scamander and his creatures with that of Harry Potter’s, the newest magical franchise will open with less than Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, which opened with $90.3 million.

Although it beats out Doctor Strange in its third week at the box office, the Marvel film, which is also ironically about a magician, opened with $85 million and made an additional $4.9 million on Friday.

In Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the year is 1926, and Newt Scamander has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident, were it not for a No-Maj (American for Muggle) named Jacob, a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt’s fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.

The film stars Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Jon Voight, and Carmen Ejogo.

Written by J.K. Rowling and directed by David Yates, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is currently playing in theaters.

Source: ComicBook.com

Mae Abdulbaki

Mae Abdulbaki

Mae Abdulbaki is an entertainment journalist and Weekend Editor at Heroic Hollywood. She's a geek, a lover of words, superheroes, and all things entertainment.