Three weeks ago, Wonder Woman was tracking at a $75 million opening. Warner Brothers was expecting an opening in the $80 million range for Wonder Woman. By late last week, tracking suggested something closer to $90 million. In the end, however, Wonder Woman shattered even those lofty box-office expectations, as it looks like it will open the weekend with an estimated $100.5 million.
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That figure breaks a number of box office records. For one, Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins now has the record for highest-grossing opening weekend for a female director, besting Sam Taylor-Johnson who held the record with $85 million for Fifty Shades of Grey. It’s the seventh best opening weekend for a movie led by an action heroine, following four Hunger Games films, Rogue One and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It’s actually the biggest opening weekend ever for a World War I film, and it’s good for the sixth best opening weekend in June. It is also the third best opening weekend of 2017, ahead of The Fate and the Furious.
It’s an unqualified smash hit for DC. Great reviews (94 percent on Rotten Tomatoes) and amazing word of mouth — 87 percent of moviegoers would definitely recommend Wonder Woman, and it’s getting an A Cinemascore — suggests that it will also have great legs at the box office. It’s the kind of film that is expected to get a lot of repeat viewers over the long haul. International box office is also pointing toward more than $200 million this weekend. Ultimately, Wonder Woman could hit $300 million domestically, and $600-$700 million worldwide for the film. A sequel is inevitable, and Patty Jenkins is already committed to it.
Demographically, Wonder Woman’s audience breaks down 53 percent female, with women over the age of 25 making up the largest segment of the audience.
The massive opening and the great reviews also go a long way toward rehabbing the beleaguered reputation for DCEU films after the mixed-to-negative reviews for Batman v. Superman and Suicide Squad. It should also boost prospects for Justice League in November, which will also feature Wonder Woman.
Meanwhile, Wonder Woman wasn’t the only film to open wide this weekend. In the kids market, Captain Underpants also put up a solid $25 million, which is a great number for an animated film that only cost $30 million to produce. With a solid Cinemascore of a B+ and great reviews (86 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), Underpants owns the kid market for another two weeks, when Cars 3 makes it to theaters.
Disney held spots three and four this weekend. Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales dropped 66 percent after an already lackluster opening weekend. It fetched $21 million as it approaches $115 million domestically after 10 days. International box office, however, has been huge for the pic. It’s already crossed $400 million worldwide. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 comes in at number four, adding nearly $10 million to bring it up to $355 million (and over $800 million worldwide). Baywatch continues to falter in its second weekend, adding only $8.5 million, bringing its total to $41 million after 10 days. The $70 million film is going to have difficulty breaking even.
The rest of the top ten sees Alien: Covenant at number six ($3.9 million; $67 million cumulative); Everything Everything ($3.1 million, $28 million total); Snatched ($1.3 million; $43 million total); and King Arthur with $1.1 million, limping toward $37 million cumulative.
Next weekend, Wonder Woman will test its box-office legs against Tom Cruise’ The Mummy, Megan Leavey, and A24’s horror pic, It Comes at Night.
(Via Deadline, Box Office Mojo)
