Suicide Squad Set for Massive Opening Weekend at Box Office

Suicide Squad finally hits theaters this weekend, and it is on course to break box office records. The latest film in DC's cinematic superhero universe was already predicted to be the highest grossing film ever released in August, but new estimates suggest it could become one of the biggest films of the entire summer.

As The Wrap reports, tracking figures estimate that the movie could make between $130 million and $140 million in its first three days. While Warner's own predictions put it at a slightly more conservative $125 million, all figures are way ahead of the current record holder for an August release. In 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy made $94.3 million in its opening weekend.

If Suicide Squad achieves the upper reach of its current estimate, it will emerge as the third biggest opener of the year, beating Finding Dory's $135 million. Marvel's Captain America: Civil War had the most successful opening weekend, with a $180 million debut, followed by DC's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

The movie is directed by David Ayer, and tells the story of a group of death row supervillains who are employed covertly by the US government to perform dangerous missions, in return for reduced prison sentences.

It stars Jared Leto as Joker, alongside Will Smith as Deadshot, and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, and Jay Hernandez co-star, with Ben Affleck making a cameo appearance as Batman.