'Fast & Furious 6' Earns $120 Million in Four Days

Universal's

sped past the competition last weekend with a three-day haul of nearly $100 million, setting a new record for the studio.

According to

, the film earned $98.5 million during the first three days at the box office (Friday, May 24 through Sunday, May 26). While the final ticket sales have not been tabulated for the four-day weekend, the film is estimated to have earned a total of

through Memorial Day.

, the other big film released during the holiday weekend, earned

. Under normal circumstances, this would be considered a huge win for

. R-rated films tend to have a difficult time at theaters because of the limited sales potential. While PG-13 films can be seen by almost anyone, R-rated films are intended for those who are 17 years or older. Adults can purchase tickets for minors, but that restriction puts a strain on box office receipts. Over the last five years,

made enough money to earn a spot among the annual top 10 domestic grosses. Two of those films were from

series -- the other was Universal's

. The original

grossed

during its opening weekend. By the time the film concluded its box office run,

had earned more than $277 million domestically.

earned less overall ($254 million domestically) but sold tickets at a faster rate, earning

during its opening weekend. This is what makes the ticket sales of

so disappointing for Warner Bros. and its parent, Time Warner.

, on the other hand, defied sequel expectations by earning more last weekend than any of its predecessors. Comparatively,

(the fourth chapter in the series) earned

than its predecessor,

, during its opening weekend. Likewise, Dimension's

earned

when it first arrived in theaters on April 15, 2011 -- far less than

(

) and

(

). While

is technically a reboot, it is also the fourth film in the studio's string of

flicks. It opened on a Tuesday and earned

than

made in

. This is a common trait for movie sequels, but the

series has been different.

(the fourth film) earned more than its predecessors at a time when the franchise was expected to die off.

more or less flopped at the box office with only

earned during its opening weekend. Unlike the other films in the franchise,

did not feature any of the main actors from the series. When Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez returned for the fourth film, moviegoers headed back to theaters. With at least three more chapters already being planned, it seems that the

series could prove to be one of the most valuable parts of

acquisition of NBCUniversal.