The Jungle Book box office: Jon Favreau Disney film Friday box office hits $32.4 million

Chalk it up to nostalgia, positive reviews, or the “Bare Necessities,” but The Jungle Book earned a strong start heading into the weekend.

Directed by Jon Favreau, the latest animated-to-live-action Disney film grossed an estimated $32.4 million from Friday screenings. If it keeps up, the film is projected to surpass $80 million for the entire weekend. The Jungle Book‘s overseas numbers, a whopping $57.1 million, nearly doubled this domestic haul.

WANT MORE EW? Subscribe now to keep up with the latest in movies, television and music.

The film, adapted by Justin Marks from the Rudyard Kipling stories, entered the weekend with overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics; The Jungle Book has a 95 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. The Mouse House, too, seemed pleased with the finished product and quickly greenlit development on a sequel, which brings back Favreau and Marks.

Meanwhile, Barbershop: The Next Cut earned an estimated $7 million from Friday screenings, while previous weekend champion, The Boss, pulled in approximately $3.1 million. Updated weekend box office figures will be available on Sunday.