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Felix Quinonez: It's hard to find a reason not to call this a disappointing opening for HTTYD2. Technically it's a fine opening and when you add in the overseas grosses I think it will see a profit. But given what we know about how sequels behave and how the reputation of the predecessor impacts its opening weekend, I was expecting to see a much bigger growth. I guess when it comes down to it, four years is a long time and perhaps the ads could have showcased more humor. But even with that taken into consideration, I think it should have seen a bigger opening weekend.

It reminds me a lot of Kung Fu Panda 2. The first installment of that franchise grossed roughly the same as HTTYD domestically, was well reviewed and loved by audiences. The sequel received almost as good reviews but for some reason it didn't receive any sort of box office bump domestically. Not only that but it also opened against an R rated comedy sequel (The Hangover Part II). It seems that like with Kung Fu Panda 2, at least part of HTTYD2's disappointing opening weekend is a mystery.

Jay Barney: I understand the discussion about box office buzz and this being a "disappointing" opening, but I think it only goes so far. How to Train Your Dragon never was Despicable Me, or Monsters, Inc., or Toy Story. It was a great film that had a nice opening, saw some great legs, and went on to make a lot of money. I'm one to sit back and watch the numbers before taking that discussion much further.

I'd also like to point out that the budget for How to Train Your Dragon 2 somehow came in very near or even less than the original, which is crazy in an industry where studios spend so much. From an accounting perspective, it opened higher than the original, is going to surpass the profit of the original sooner, and won't have ANY of the competition the original had.

When the How to Train Your Dragon opened in 2010....Diary of a Wimpy Kid was already in theaters. Alice in Wonderland was still going strong. By some fluke in the schedule How to Train Your Dragon 2 is going to be the ONLY kids offering for a full month. That is four consecutive weekends of this being the only choice for families with kids. Now it may be difficult to match the awesome holds of the original, but when there is NO competition, legs should be pretty easy.

David Mumpower: People are mentioning Maleficent as a competitive negative and the lack of upcoming movies as a positive. I maintain what I always have, which is that competition is a concept that is wildly overstated in terms of actual impact on a box office performance. None of the titles in release impacted the performance of How to Train Your Dragon a significant amount nor will they do so with the sequel.

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