The Batman broke off the box office in the United States, grossing $21.6 million in previews for Warner Bros. and DC. This covers Thursday night shows as well as a few Imax sneak peeks on Tuesday and Wednesday. The $200 million event film, starring Robert Pattinson as the Caped Crusader, is anticipated to gross more than $100 million by Sunday, making it the second-best opening weekend of the pandemic era behind Spider-Man: No Way Home.
After No Way Home ($50 million), Batman’s preview gross is the second-best of the epidemic era. Venom 2 ($11.6 million), Eternals ($9.5 million), and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings ($8.8 million) followed Black Widow with $13.2 million.
And The Batman outperformed the pre-pandemic superhero films Suicide Squad ($20.5 million) and Joker ($13.3 million) in terms of preview grosses. The important caveat is that the $21.6 million number includes the limited Imax fan screenings.
The movie, directed by Matt Reeves, is a rogues’ gallery of Batman characters that focuses on Bruce Wayne’s early days of combating crime. The Riddler, a serial killer hunted by Batman, is played by Paul Dano, while Catwoman is played by Zoe Kravitz, and the Penguin is played by Colin Farrell.
After a dismal January and February, theatre owners are depending on The Batman to bring in big crowds.
AMC Entertainment, the world’s largest exhibitor, is even using the film to test variable pricing in the United States, charging anywhere from $1 to $1.50 more for a ticket to Batman.
Internationally, The Batman debuted to a promising $5.3 million in its first few territories on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, the film was released in an additional 47 markets, albeit its release in Russia was cancelled at the last minute due to the invasion of Ukraine. The Batman opened to $1.4 million in France on Wednesday, bringing the early total to $2.1 million, including previews. That’s the biggest showing for a Warners title since the epidemic began, and it’s also the best showing for a Warners title in other markets where it debuted midweek.
The Batman is the first Warners film to receive an exclusive cinema release in the United States since the end of 2020. All Warner Bros. films from 2021 were released in theatres and on HBO Max at the same time. Critics have praised the Batman movie.
“Matt Reeves proved that major studio franchise movies based on renowned screen properties didn’t have to preclude sophisticated, emotionally rich narrative with his Planet of the Apes volumes.” “The Batman,” a sombre genre film “in which the superhero trappings of cape and cowl, Batmobile, and amazing gadgetry are woven into the gritty noir textures of a tightly structured detective thriller,” writes THR’s David Rooney.
There are indeed a number of reasons why The Batman will likely underperform No Way Home’s $260 million domestic debut. Reeves’ picture is approximately three hours long and is significantly darker than No Way Home, which included generation after generation of performers portraying the webslinger.
Read more : READ THIS BEFORE WATCHING BATMAN
