Everyone loves an underdog story, especially if that dog is part-fish. Before it came out, few expected much from Aquaman, the latest solo venture in the severely spotty DCEU. It would make bank, sure, but it almost certainly wouldn’t do what it just did (as noted by Deadline): cross the billion dollar worldwide grosses line in about a month of release. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer tatted-up fish bro who says things like “My man!” and “Yeahyuh!”
The milestone came this weekend — strangely the same week it surrendered the top spot, in America at least, to a remake of a French movie starring a guy who ditched the Oscars gig in disgrace. Stateside, Aquaman “only” grossed $17 million, bringing its domestic total to $287 million. Globally, however, it made enough to push the total cume to a whopping $1.08 billion.
That makes Aquaman the 37th movie in history — not adjusted for inflation, mind you — to cross that line. Put that way, the milestone seems less spectacular. But it’s still impressive, especially considering it stars a guy who’s never had a major hit on his lonesome. (Surely few remember Jason Momoa’s stab at a Conan the Barbarian reboot.)
Worth noting is that, as of now, over 70% of the movie’s grosses come from overseas; apparently the world just really likes movies where Willem Dafoe rides a sea creature. Compare/contrast with Wonder Woman, which grossed substantially more stateside than Aquaman: $412 million to Aquaman’s current $287. And yet only half of Wonder Woman’s grosses came from overseas. It didn’t even cross the billion dollar mark.
Anyway, congrats to Aquaman, which became the DCEU’s highest grossing title over a week ago. And congrats to Oscar-winning thespian Nicole Kidman, who, with this and the afore-alluded-to The Upside, currently co-stars in the top two highest grossing films in America.
(Via Deadline)