What Can Comcast Investors Expect From 'Jurassic World' This Weekend?

While American moviegoers are gearing up for the release of the latest installment of the iconic “Jurassic Park” franchise, “Jurassic World,” Comcast Corp (NASDAQ: CMCSA) investors are eagerly awaiting the movie’s weekend box office numbers.

This year has already seen some huge blockbusters from Comcast’s Universal Studios and rivals The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) and Twenty-First Century Fox Inc (NASDAQ: FOXA), and investors are hoping that "Jurassic World" will follow suit and bring in some big bucks.

$100 Million Target?

A $100 million opening weekend target is a nice round-number that has been making the rounds when it comes to “Jurassic World.” Pre-release ticket sales have been extremely strong, indicating that the $100 million mark is certainly realistic.

Franchise Rekindled

The original “Jurassic Park” movie shattered all kinds of box office records and remains one of the most iconic movies of all time. The franchise’s second installment was also the highest grossing film of 1997.

However, enthusiasm for the franchise waned by the time “Jurassic Park III” hit theaters, and the film brought in only $181 million over its entire box office lifetime.

High Hopes

With a reported production cost of $150 million, Comcast has a lot riding on “Jurassic World” this weekend. If “Jurassic World” does crack the $100 million opening weekend mark, it will become the third film to do so this year, following Comcast’s “Furious 7” at $147 million and Disney’s “Avengers: Age of Ultron” at a whopping $187 million.

Only two movies cracked the $100 million mark in 2014: Viacom Inc (NASDAQ: VIA)'s "Transformers: Age of Extinction" and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp (NYSE: LGF)'s "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part I."