Despite the tough sell of a “hard R-rating” and over a decade in development at Fox, it looks like all the hard work that went into makingDeadpoolwill pay off. Early indications from Thursday ticket sales, which by themselves broke records for R-rated films and previews in February, suggest that theRyan Reynolds-starring action film is in for a very healthy weekend at the box office. Even so, it falls to fans and moviegoers to make sure they get out to seeDeadpoolin the theaters in order to provide the big payday that the Merc with a Mouth deserves.
As for the Thursday box office numbers,BoxOfficeMojoreports thatDeadpoolpulled in $12.7 million, making it the largest February preview ever (overFifty Shades of Gray’s$8.6 million last year) and the highest R-rated preview, toppingThe Hangover Part II’s$10.4 million in 2011. Numbers to keep in mind for Friday’s opening are around the $30 million mark, which is whereFifty Shades of GrayandAmerican Sniperlanded during their wide releases.Deadpoolcould easily be looking at more record-setting box office performances throughout the weekend.
THRgives the antihero comic book movie a strong chance to rule the Valentine’s Day/Presidents Day weekend, estimating a four-day gross of $65+ million. Fox is hedging bets with an estimate between $60 and $65 million, while other analysts thinkDeadpoolhas a good chance of breaking $70 million. That would put the film in good company with some of the top R-rated debuts ever, though it wouldn’t be a complete surprise should it topFifty Shades of Gray’s$93 million Presidents Day weekend record from last year.
Looking more closely at Thursday’s numbers, it seems thatDeadpoolalso beat Disney/Marvel’sCaptain America: The Winter Soldier($10.2 million) andGuardians of the Galaxy($11.2 million), so that’s a feather in Fox’s cap. Speaking of Fox,Deadpoolis even out-performing the studio’s most famous franchise, having out-earnedX-Men: Days of Future Pastin Britain and France. It’s breaking records in Taiwan ($1.4 million), has landed the biggest R-rated film opening in the Philippines ($357,000), has Belgium’s top superhero movie debut ($270,000), and set Australia’s new February opening day record ($2.1 million). It’s just a shame the film wasbanned in China and Uzbekistandue to censor concerns. China’s box office numbers could have made the film’s performance even more impressive; Uzbekistan, not so much.
Though it wasn’t released in 3D,Deadpooldid manage to land the sixth-highest debut for an IMAX film. All in all, things are looking solid at the box office forDeadpoolthis weekend, and considering that it only cost $58 million to make (without taking its fantastic marketing campaign into account), all signs look good for its eventual sequel, as well. Directed byTim Miller, the film also starsMorena Baccarin,Ed Skrein,T.J. MillerandGina Carano.
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