Los Angels: “Spider-Man: No Way Home” racked up $ 253 million in US and Canada ticket sales over the weekend, setting pandemic record and placing third in domestic debut in Hollywood history, even as a new COVID-19 variant spreads.
Around the world, “No Way Home†generated an additional $ 334.2 million for a worldwide weekend total of $ 587.2 million, according to distributor Sony Corp. estimates.
The return of the blockbuster has brought a much needed shock to film companies such as AMC Entertainment, Cinemark and Cineworld which have struggled to attract crowds during the pandemic. The emergence of the Omicron variant has raised new concerns.
But as the Broadway and New York Rockettes canceled shows and the National Football League postponed games, theaters were in turmoil. Fans filled the auditoriums for “No Way Home,†a big-budget superhero show co-produced by Sony and Walt Disney Co that only plays in theaters.
The film stars Tom Holland as the Marvel superhero and Zendaya as his girlfriend MJ in the third film in the Spider-Man trilogy. It also brings back stars from previous “Spider-Man” movies.
“This weekend’s historic ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ results from around the world and in the face of many challenges, reaffirms the unparalleled cultural impact that exclusive cinema films can have,†Tom Rothman, President – Managing Director of Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Motion Picture Group, said in a statement.
Ticket sales in the United States and Canada crushed the most optimistic projections of last week, when analysts considered $ 200 million a long shot. “No Way Home” finished just behind “Avengers: Endgame” and “Avengers: Infinity War” and ahead of the Star Wars movie “The Force Awakens”.
Cinemark said ticket sales for “No Way Home” were particularly strong in the United States and Latin America and on large format screens.
Holland thanked the fans. “Thank you thank you thank you and if you haven’t seen Spider-Man come home yet … merry Christmas and you know what to do,” he wrote on Instagram.
The fact that the film concluded a popular trilogy added to its appeal, said Jeff Bock, senior media analyst at Exhibitor Relations Co, and many fans wanted to see the new episode on opening weekend before reading the spoilers on social media.
Super hero
The success underscored the continued appeal of superhero movies in theaters, Bock added, especially among young people accustomed to streaming movies at home.
“It reinforces the fact that superheroes are number one and everyone is somewhere below,†he said.
The previous pandemic record was set by the Marvel superhero film “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” which grossed $ 90 million nationally in its first three days in October. Marvel’s “Black Widow†opened with $ 80 million in May.
Other genres have struggled to attract audiences. Steven Spielberg’s remake of the classic musical “West Side Story”, which received rave reviews and Oscar nominations, sold tickets for $ 3.4 million in the US and Canadian markets over the weekend. end. His world total stands at $ 27.1 million after two weekends at the movies.
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