The Jungle Book dominated the weekend box office, grossing a massive $103.6 million, and extending the Walt Disney Co.’s success in making live action versions of its classic animated features.

Moreover, that ranks as the second biggest April opening in history, behind only Furious 7’s $147.2 million launch.

With Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Maleficent, and now The Jungle Book, this strategy of revitalising fairy tales has become a virtual brand in itself.

This strategy of revitalising fairy tales has become a virtual brand in itself

The studio will continue to mine its library: Beauty and the Beast with Emma Watson hits theatres on March 17, 2017, and new versions of Cruella De Ville and Peter Pan are in the works.

Critics loved The Jungle Book, handing it a 95 per cent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Word-of-mouth for the film also looks strong. The picture received an A CinemaScore, which could set it up for a healthy run in the days and weeks ahead. Families made up 49 per cent of the opening weekend audience. The film performed well in Imax, earning $10.4 million, and 43 per cent of its domestic opening weekend gross came on 3D screens.

Jon Favreau (Iron Man) directed the $175 million feature. Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, and Scarlett Johansson head up the vocal cast with Neel Sethi making his feature film debut as Mowgli, the feral child at the heart of the story.