There is no stopping the Marvel juggernaut. With $36 million in Thursday previews, Marvel Studios’ latest superhero spectacle,Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, is looking to open with around $175 million in its debut weekend. The film’s $36 million previews haul ranks eighth on the all-time list, behindAvengers: Infinity War’s $39 million in 2018.
By comparison,Avengers: Endgameleads the field with $60 million in Thursday previews. It’s followed byStar Wars: The Force Awakens($57 million),Spider-Man: No Way Home($50 million),Star Wars: The Last Jedi($45 million),Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2($43.5 million) andStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker($40 million). Each of these films made between $169 million and $357 million in their opening weekends.
Multiverse of Madnesshas made $60 million in advance ticket sales domestically, as well as $85 million from overseas territories. It is expected to top $125 million internationally by Sunday. The film is playing in 4,534 theaters, which makes for the seventh-largest release ever. This is also Disney’s biggest opening since last year’sShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Remember,Spider-Man: No Way Homewas a Sony release. That film made nearly $2 billion worldwide, and was such an event that many risked their chances with COVID-19 just to watch it.
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That being said, the Marvel brand seems indefatigable right now. EvenEternals, which was considered by many to be a critical and commercial let-down, made nearly as much worldwide asShang-Chi, which everybody was rather pleased with. In fact,Eternalstopped the lifetime worldwide hauls of Phase I Marvel titlesThe Incredible HulkandCaptain America: The First Avenger.
The firstDoctor Strangefilm was released in 2016, and made a healthy $677 million worldwide, including $232 million in the United States. It was directed byScott Derrickson, who was originally supposed to return forMultiverse of Madness, butdropped outdue to creative differences. He was replaced bySam Raimi, who is credited with essentially ushering in the era of the modern superhero blockbuster with his Spider-Man trilogy. Reviews forMultiverse of Madnesshave praised the Raimi-isms in the film, although they’ve been critical of the fan-service and overstuffed narrative.
Collider’s ownRoss Bonaimewrote inhis review, “Multiverse of Madness succeeds when it presents Raimi’s gifts as a director, but falters through fan service and trying to one-up what came before.”
StarringBenedict Cumberbatch,Elizabeth Olsen,Xochitl Gomez,Chiwetel Ejiofor,Benedict WongandRachel McAdams,Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessis now playing in virtually every movie theater in the country.
