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 The Warner Bros. and DC Comics film appears to have delivered
on massively high expectations -- as of the Sunday morning the
super hero film is looking at a $100.5 million domestic opening
weekend from 4,165 locations. That, combined with an
international take of $122.5 million from 55 markets gives the
movie a global opening of $223 million. $18.3 million of the
global total came from Imax screens -- that's the third biggest
opening for a DC Comics film behind "The Dark Knight Rises" and
ahead of "Suicide Squad."
"Globally this property has just resonated with fans," said
Warner Bros. distribution chief Jeff Goldstein. "There's
something iconic about Diana and the story of Wonder Woman
that's hitting the zeitgeist perfectly."
Compared with other super hero movies, "Wonder Woman" is
expecting a larger domestic opening than "Iron Man" ($98.6
million); "Doctor Strange" ($85 million); "Thor" ($65.7
million); but less than "Deadpool" ($132 million) and "Man of
Steel" ($116.6 million).
Patty Jenkins now holds the banner for the best domestic opening
for a female director, topping "Fifty Shades of Grey's" Sam
Taylor-Johnson ($85.1 million). Before "Wonder Woman," Jenkins'
only feature was "Monster" -- an Academy Award winner that she
made more than a decade ago with an $8 million budget.
Gal Gadot stars in the film as the titular hero. The Israeli
actress -- also known for her role in the Fast and Furious
franchise -- made her debut as Diana Prince in "Batman v
Superman: Dawn of Justice," and will also appear at least twice
more in both "Justice League" movies if she doesn't get a sequel
of her own.
While the opening weekend for "Wonder Woman" is impressive, DC
Comics movies have scored more in the past -- recently "Batman v
Superman" and "Suicide Squad" rocketed to $166 million and $134
million openings respectively. But "Wonder Woman" had something
those movies didn't -- critical support (it currently has a 93%
on Rotten Tomatoes). The conversation surrounding critics'
impact on the summer box office swirled after "Baywatch"
received an aggregate score of 19%, and proceeded to flop over
the slowest Memorial Day weekend in nearly two decades.
Goldstein said the studio knew they had "something special"
after the reception to Gadot in "Batman v Superman." "While the
story was critically tough, she emerged as a real bright spot,"
Goldstein said.
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The only other major release this weekend was Fox's "Captain
Underpants: The First Epic Movie" which will take in $23.5 million
from 3,434. Kevin Hart, Ed Helms, Nick Kroll, Thomas Middleditch,
Jordan Peele, and Kristen Schaal toplined the voice cast of the
animated adventure about two students who hypnotize their principal
into thinking he's a super hero.
Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" should
land in third this weekend with about $22 million from 4,276
locations. Disney and Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2"
continues to stay in the top five, this weekend in the fourth slot.
With an additional $10 million in North American grosses from 3,507
locations, James Gunn's sequel has earned over $350 million
domestically in five weekends. "Baywatch" rounds out the top five
this weekend with about $8.5 million from 3,647 locations.
In limited release, "3 Idiotas" from Lionsgate and Pantelion will
make $600,000 from 349 locations. Cohen Media Group's historical
drama "Churchill" is looking at $407,000 from 217 theaters. And
Demetri Martin's directorial debut "Dean" from CBS Films should take
in $60,000 from 15 locations.
Following Memorial Day weekend's sluggish performance, the summer
box office trailed last year's by nearly 9%. Now, "Wonder Woman" has
helped close the gap to 3.4%. This weekend last year "Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles" flopped, but still led the domestic box office with
$35 million.
"Fortunes rise and fall very quickly within the very small summer
movie eco-system and only five weekends into the season, a solid
overall marketplace performance can have a profound impact on the
bottom line," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at
ComScore. "The trick now is to keep this momentum rolling as we head
into June and beyond."
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