Marvel is back on top.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” shattered box office records this weekend, tallying $205 million in domestic ticket sales during its opening, the highest debut of 2024 and of an R-rated film ever.
The film outpaced analysts’ expectations, which called for an opening haul between $160 million and $180 million.
“The massive debut for ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ should convince those who were throwing in the towel for the big screen back in May that you can never underestimate the power, allure resiliency and, yes, unpredictability of the movie theater experience,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore.
Internationally, the film secured $233.3 million, bringing its estimated global haul to $438.3 million for the full weekend.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” is the 34th film to be released under the MCU banner and the first of the Disney-produced installments to garner an R-rating from the Motion Picture Association. The previous two Deadpool films, both rated R, were produced and released through 20th Century Fox. Disney acquired the company in 2019, bringing the X-Men and Fantastic Four back into the larger Marvel portfolio.
Similar to previous entries in the MCU, “Deadpool & Wolverine” benefitted from fan fervor. Audiences were eager to see the flick in its opening weekend in order to avoid spoilers. Disney kept much of the film’s content secret and provided limited press screenings prior to its debut.
The strong opening of “Deadpool & Wolverine” comes after a post-pandemic box office slump for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Disney overcrowded the market with superhero streaming content in recent years and its push for quantity at the box office led to a drop in quality.
“Marvel took a mini-break to help rejuvenate their creative direction in the wake of several divisive tentpole films and this return to the arena certainly stuck the superhero landing,” said Shawn Robbins, founder and owner of Box Office Theory.
“A record-breaking R-rated debut not only shows that Marvel and Disney can spread their wings a little bit when the content calls for it, but also that Marvel fans and casual audiences alike are still eager for the kind of entertaining and meaningful blockbuster storytelling that has defined so much of their unrivaled success,” he added.
“Deadpool and Wolverine’s” opening coincided with Marvel’s San Diego Comic Con panel which revealed an updated film slate and gave fans a sense of where the franchise will head in the coming years. That includes Sam Wilson, the newly minted Captain American, seeking to rebuild the Avengers after they disbanded in the wake of their fight with Thanos, and the pending arrival of Doctor Doom, which is set to be played by Iron Man himself Robert Downey Jr.
“Every film should be taken on a case-by-case basis, but Deadpool & Wolverine in tandem with this weekend’s Comic Con announcements mark significant steps back onto a path that could reignite enthusiasm for the broader franchise,” Robbins said.
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