Everyone knew Marvel’s Deadpool & Wolverine box office results would be big, but few expected it to be this big.
The buddy comedy clawed its way to a massive $205 million domestic bow and $438.3M worldwide. That’s easily the biggest opening for an R-rated picture, handily surpassing Deadpool and Deadpool 2’s $132M and $125M, and the fifth-best opening for the MCU. D&W has already surpassed the lifetime gross of X-Men ($296M), X-men: First Class ($355M), X-Men Origins: Wolverine ($374M), X2: X-Men United ($407M), and The Wolverine ($416M) and should easily cut through the remaining X-Men and Deadpool films on its way to $1B. It will likely pass Joker’s $1.78B cume to claim the title for the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time.
Audiences awarded the Ryan Reynolds/Hugh Jackman vehicle a 97% RottenTomatoes score (compared to the 79% critic score), with many taking advantage of the premium formats. According to the trade, PLFs repped 30% of the weekend ticket sales, including $19.1M from Imax screens in North America and $36.5M from Imax screens globally.
Also of note, D&W’s massive haul pushes the MCU past the $30B mark, the first to do so. By comparison (and not adjusting for inflation), the No. 2 franchise, Star Wars, has earned $10.3 billion per The Numbers. Wow.
Last week’s champ, Twisters, came in second with $35.3M (-57%), raising its domestic total to $154.9M, while the Indie hit Longlegs reached $58.6M after three weeks of release.
This week sees the release of M. Night Shyamalan’s Trap, which is expected to do around $20-30M, and Harold and the Purple Crayon. Neither should topple D&W. Really, Marvel should enjoy smooth waters through August, with only Alien: Romulus potentially cutting into its sales midway through the month.
Box Office Results: Domestic Top 10
1.) Deadpool & Wolverine (Dis) 4,210 theaters Fri $96M, Sat $61.5M Sun $47.5M 3-day $205M/Wk 1
2.) Twisters (Uni/WB) 4,151 theaters, Fri $10.3M Sat $13.8M Sun $11.1M, 3-day$35.3M (-57%), Total $154.9M/Wk 2
3.) Despicable Me 4 (Uni) 3,610 (-502) theaters, Fri $4.4M Sat $5.5M Sun $4.1M 3-day $14.2M (-42%), Total $290.9M/Wk 4
4.) Inside Out 2 (Dis) 3,150 (-475) theaters Fri $2.5M Sat $3.3M Sun $2.5M 3-day $8.3M (-35%) Total $613.4M/Wk 7
Highest-grossing animated movie ever beating Incredibles 2‘s $608.5M!!
5.) Longlegs (NEON) 2,732 (-118) theatres, Fri $2.2M Sat $2.6M Sun $1.9M, 3-day $6.7M (-43%), Total $58.6M/Wk 3
6.) A Quiet Place: Day One (Par) 1,932 (-981) theaters, Fri $955K Sat $1.2M Sun $830K 3-day $3M (-52%), Total $134.2M/Wk 5
7.) Bad Boys Ride or Die (Sony) 1,006 (-710) theaters, Fri $390K Sat $540K Sun $345K, 3-day $1.27M (-52%), Total $191.7M/Wk 8
8.) The Fabulous Four (BST) 1,045 theaters, Fri $365K Sat $358K Sun $286K 3-day $1M/Wk 1
9.) Fly Me to the Moon (App/Sony) 1,314 (-2042) locations, Fri $220K Sat $320K Sun $210K 3-day $750K (-77%) Total $19.1M/Wk 3
10) Raayan (PMP) 133 theaters, Fri $137K, Sat $138K Sun $102K 3-day $378K, Total $453K, Wk 1
(Source: Deadline)
