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Kim Hollis: Minions, the latest film to emerge from the Despicable Me franchise, debuted with $115.7 million. What do you think of this result?

Ben Gruchow: The impression varies depending on whether we're looking at it in the context of a sequel or a spinoff. As a sequel, it's a very good result; the multiplier is a little on the low end, and the Friday-to-Saturday decline points to fan rush. Still, it would require a much heftier decline to avoid being the highest-grossing chapter of the whole “Despicable” franchise.

As a spinoff, this is phenomenal; Minions is the new benchmark for the practice, without question. At this point, I'm wondering when the people at Universal are going to schedule the installation of the gold statues and water fountains in all of the bathrooms.

Jason Barney: There is no other way to spin this except that it is an exceptional opening....REALLY good. I can remember when Universal announced the Minions were going to be the focus of a feature film, and I remember the collective groan of critics/pundits. It wasn't quite across the board, but I remember a pretty vocal chorus questioning the move.

Universal has to be laughing now, as this is a huge opening and it continues their red hot year. To put this in context....they spent $75 million and almost doubled that take in the United States in one weekend. While the film may not be as good as the Despicable Me offerings, this is going to be a money maker and it is going to be pretty well received throughout July. Even with Inside Out, there is still an absence of market share for younger kids. I would expect the holds to be terrific and Universal's bank accounts to burst at some point.

Matthew Huntley: This is (more) sensational news for Universal, who now commands a whopping 26% of the year's total box-office, and the Despicable Me franchise in general. Not only does it ensure another sequel in the main series but also likely another one featuring just the Minions alone. The possibilities, including those for toys, games, attractions, etc., now seem endless, and these characters will surely become a modern family/pop-culture symbol for years to come, similar to Disney/Pixar's Cars (if they haven't already). Unfortunately, though, just like Cars, Minions as a movie leaves something to be desired in the story/quality departments and it comes off as sort of empty and unfulfilling compared Despicable Me (1 and 2). That likely won't matter as far as this becoming a major moneymaker for the studio (it has its eyes set on $1 billion worldwide), but hopefully the mixed reviews will light a fire under the storytellers and prompt them to get more creative with the plots and characters instead of just delivering slapstick comedy. It's not a bad movie, mind you, but it's also not a very good one. Still, I imagine the only sound racing through the Universal executives' heads at the moment is, "Cha-ching!"

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