Robert Pattinson’s The Batman flew to a huge $57 million at the Friday box office for a projected opening weekend north of $120 million.
The arrival of the Warner Bros. and DC tentpole couldn’t have come sooner for theater owners following a slow January and February in terms of Hollywood tentpoles.
Directed by Matt Reeves, The Batman will easily score the second-best domestic opening of the pandemic era behind Spider-Man: No Way Home, which debuted to an astonishing $260.1 million in mid-December on its way to earning more than $1.85 billion to date at the worldwide box office.
The Batman’s launch is looking like a sizable victory considering that it runs nearly three hours and is far darker than No Way Home.
The PG-13 film — fueled by males between 18 and 34 — centers on Bruce Wayne’s earlier days of fighting crime and is a rogues’ gallery of Batman characters. Paul Dano plays the Riddler, a serial killer pursued by Batman, while Zoë Kravitz plays Catwoman and Colin Farrell appears as the Penguin.
Friday’s haul for The Batman included $21.6 million in Thursday previews and fan screenings in Imax theaters on Tuesday and Wednesday. Like other superhero pics, the $200 million tentpole is doing substantial business on Imax and other premium, large-format screens.
The world’s largest exhibitor, AMC Entertainment, is using the movie as a chance to experiment with variable pricing in the U.S. and charge anywhere from $1 to $1.50 more for a ticket. That’s for regular digital screenings; the upcharge for showings on AMC-operated Imax and PLF screens is likely more.
Overseas, The Batman is opening in numerous markets, although its release in Russia was scrubbed at the eleventh hour because of the invasion of Ukraine. It doesn’t release in China until March 14.
The Batman has been well received by critics and earned an A- CinemaScore from audiences, as well as strong PostTrack exit scores. Good word-of-mouth will determine whether the film can fly past $120 million in its domestic debut and further the box office recovery.
According to EntTelligence, Batman commanded more than 80 percent of all tickets sold on Friday, with 22 percent of the audience opting to see it in a premium format.
Box Office: ‘The Batman’ Flies to $57M Friday for $120M-Plus Opening - Hollywood Reporter
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