Mamma Mia 2 box office forecast revealed: Will ABBA sequel Here We Go Again be a hit?

The sequel to 2008’s hugely popular Mamma Mia! is out in three weeks’ time, and will – for many – be the movie event of the summer, if the likes of Mission Impossible 6 and Ant-Man and the Wasp aren’t your cup of tea.

According to Forbes, the movie is projected to land a $30 million debut in its opening weekend in the US.

Now, considering Mamma Mia!, the first movie, made $616 million worldwide, that may seem like a low number – but it’s not all as it seems.

Surprisingly, the original Mamma Mia! movie did not actually do remarkably well in the United States – of its impressive haul, only $144.1 million came from the USA, while the other $471.6 million was from overseas.

What’s more the first film opened with $27.6 million in the US, meaning this sequel will be about on-par.

And while few expect the sequel to get anywhere close to the global total of the original movie, it’s still of the genre that could enjoy a slower-burning box office result: it’s not particularly a movie that fans will rush to see on opening night, like a big franchise comic book blockbuster.

Mamma Mia 2 has been ten years in the making, and features a slew of ABBA hits in the soundtrack.

Its star Julie Walters recently admitted that even she was concerned that it would be “awful” when she heard it had been green-lit after a decade.

“I couldn’t see how it could work and what they could do with us,” she told Good Housekeeping.

“My first reaction when my agent told me they were making Mamma Mia 2 was, ‘oh God no, it is going to be awful’.

“But the script was so good. I think it is fantastic. I think it is better than the first one.”

Walters also praised Cher, with whom she stars in Here We Go Again.

“It was heaven having her there, she’s a really great girl. I’m a massive fan,” she beamed.

“I always loved her as a kid. She was great and she sings this song at the end which makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck.”