‘Thunderbolts’ opens with $76 million to lead box office
This image released by Marvel Studios shows, from left, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, Sebastian Stan, Florence Pugh and Wyatt Russell in a scene from “Thunderbolts.” (Disney-Marvel Studios via AP)
LOS ANGELES – “Thunderbolts” opened to a healthy $76 million this weekend to lead all films in North America, according to industry estimates released Sunday.
The latest Marvel superhero adventure was directed by Jake Schreier and features an ensemble cast that includes Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Lewis Pullman, Wendell Pierce, David Harbour and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
This image released by Marvel Studios shows, from left, Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen, Florence Pugh, Wyatt Russell and David Harbour in a scene from “Thunderbolts.” (Disney-Marvel Studios via AP)
“Sinners” continued its strong run, pulling in $33 million in its third weekend in theaters in the United States and Canada, Comscore reported.
“A Minecraft Movie” was third with $13.7 million Friday through Sunday in its fifth week of release.
“The Accountant 2” was fourth with $9.46 million in its second weekend, followed by “Until Dawn,” which took in $3.8 million in its second weekend.
Rounding out the top 10 domestic releases were “The Amateur” ($1.8 million), “The King of Kings” ($1.6 million), “Warfare” ($1.2 million), “Hit: The Third Case” ($869,667) and “The Surfer” ($674,560).
This weekend’s overall three-day box office haul was estimated at $145.6 million. The year-to-date total is $2.489 billion — up 15.7 percent from the figure at this time last year, according to Comscore.
“Thunderbolts” brings together misfits and antiheroes like Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Red Guardian (David Harbour) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan).
This image released by Marvel Studios shows, from left, Hannah John-Kamen, Olga Kurylenko, Wyatt Russell, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour and Florence Pugh in a scene from “Thunderbolts.” (Disney-Marvel Studios via AP)
“It’s a fun twist on what a movie like this could be,” said director Jake Schreier. “There are some places we’re gonna go that are different from what you would normally expect.”
He added: “It’s trying to be a movie about something and the moment we’re in — not in a political sense, but just where everybody’s at and what everyone’s been going through.”
Some had expected a bigger opening for “Thunderbolts” because of the film’s good word-of-mouth. Unlike most recent MCU entries, reviews (88 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) have been excellent for “Thunderbolts.” Audiences gave it an “A-” CinemaScore. (With CNS report)
