Thunderbolts* kicks off moviegoing summer with $209 million worldwide
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(In foreground) Florence Pugh (left) and David Harbour in Thunderbolts*, which earned $209 million globally in its first weekend.
PHOTO: MARVEL STUDIOS
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LOS ANGELES – Marvel movie Thunderbolts* brought in US$162 million (S$209 million) at theatres around the world over the weekend after it opened on May 2, providing a solid start to the summer movie season that is key to Hollywood’s year at the box office.
Thunderbolts*, the story of a ragtag group of heroes who unite to fight a supervillain, earned US$76 million in the United States and Canada, said distributor Walt Disney on May 4.
The returns were in line with pre-weekend forecasts, though below the US$88.8 million domestic opening of Marvel’s Captain America: Brave New World in February.
“This is about what we’ve come to expect from Marvel movies in the recent marketplace,” said Mr Jeff Bock, senior box-office analyst at Exhibitor Relations. It was a decent start, he added, for a movie with lesser-known characters that have played sidekicks in other Marvel stories.
Starring Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan, Thunderbolts* sets the stage for Marvel’s July release Fantastic Four and 2026’s Avengers: Doomsday. “This is a prelude to something much bigger,” Mr Bock said.
On May 3, actor Robert Downey Jr gave a glimpse of the Avengers: Doomsday cast assembled. He shared pictures of the cast – Chris Hemsworth, Paul Rudd, Simu Liu, Anthony Mackie, Channing Tatum, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Vanessa Kirby and Winston Duke – attending a private watch party for Thunderbolts*.
Downey played Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – a character who died at the end of Avengers: Endgame (2019). He is returning to Avengers: Doomsday as the villain Doctor Doom.
While it was a hit at home, Thunderbolts* had a slow opening of US$10.4 million in China. It was the first test of Chinese appetites for Hollywood films since the authorities pledged to limit movie imports as part of a trade war with the US’ Donald Trump administration.
The figures from the rest of the world were positive, Mr Bock said, considering Thunderbolts* doubled 2024’s dismal start to summer with the action comedy The Fall Guy.
Hollywood brings in about 40 per cent of the year’s box-office receipts during summer, which the industry measures from the first weekend in May through Labour Day in September. Theatres are still trying to climb back to pre-Covid-19 ticket-sale levels.
Through May 4, year-to-date ticket sales in the US and Canada were running 15 per cent above 2024, but 31.8 per cent below 2019. The summer of 2019 benefited from Avengers: Endgame, which had a record opening of US$357.1 million at domestic theatres.
Thunderbolts* had the strongest reviews for a Marvel Cinematic Universe film since 2021’s hit Spider-Man: No Way Home, said Mr Andrew Cripps, head of global theatrical distribution at Disney. On the Rotten Tomatoes website, 88 per cent of critics and 94 per cent of moviegoers gave it positive marks.
“I think word of mouth will be strong and people will continue to discover it,” he said.
Also this weekend, spring smash Sinners finished in second place on domestic charts behind Thunderbolts*, collecting US$33 million and bringing its total to US$179.7 million. Hit video game adaptation A Minecraft Movie landed third with US$13.7 million. Its domestic total reached US$398.2 million.
The coming summer slate is filled with sequels, such as Jurassic World Rebirth and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, and a new Superman movie. REUTERS
