The animated film “The Garfield Movie” from Sony made $22 million in its first weekend at the global box office. Considering that the family movie is only presently showing in 18 markets—roughly 35% of its total global distribution—those ticket sales indicate a positive beginning for the production.

“The Garfield Movie” doesn’t open in the U.S. and Canada until Memorial Day weekend on May 24. When it does land in domestic theaters, it’s projected to earn $35 million over the long weekend and will compete for first place with director George Miller’s “Mad Max” prequel “Furiosa.”

Spain was the largest opening for “The Garfield Movie” abroad, grossing $3.2 million over five days. Brazil, Italy, and Peru came in second, third, and fourth, respectively, with $2.2, $1.6, and $1.3 million. Revenues for the movie are reportedly tracking 76% higher than those of the kid-friendly picture “DC League of Super Pets,” which eventually brought in $113 million abroad, and 41% higher than those of “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish,” which had a slow start but eventually brought in a whopping $295 million. For the same set of markets, ticket sales are currently comparable to those of “The Secret Life of Pets 2,” which concluded its international run with $272 million. This is due to current exchange rates. “Garfield” will keep releasing throughout the summer in significant foreign markets.

The orange cat from “The Garfield Movie,” who is known for hating Mondays and loving lasagna, is voiced by Chris Pratt. Garfield and his dog buddy Odie are compelled to leave their comfortable indoor life and accompany their scruffy street cat Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) on a risky heist following a fortuitous reunion with his father, who has been absent for a long time. Produced by Alcon Entertainment and animation company DNEG, the film stars Hannah Waddingham, Nicholas Hoult, Brett Goldstein, and Bowen Yang.

“Garfield” trailed “The Fall Guy,” an action-comedy from Universal featuring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, to the second spot on the global rankings. David Leitch’s movie brought in an additional $25.4 million from 78 nations, raising its total revenue from overseas sales to $36.9 million. These earnings are comparable to those of Letich’s previous picture, “Bullet Train,” which concluded its global run in 2022 with $135 million, and Paramount’s action-rom-com “The Lost City,” starring Sandra Bullock, which concluded its worldwide run with $87 million, at the same stage of their theatrical runs.

Even though “The Fall Guy” has already been making waves at the foreign box office, its $28.5 million opening weekend total in North America fell somewhat short of projections. It is concerning that the movie, which cost $140 million, has only made $65.4 million worldwide. To cover its costs during its theatrical run, it will require positive word-of-mouth and interest from international audiences.

In other parts of the world, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” brought in $9.8 million from 78 markets. After six weeks of release, it pushes the tentpole to a staggering $546.9 million worldwide and $358.8 million overseas.