Weekend Box Office: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Opens to $181.3M Domestic, $330M Global

Photo Credits: Disney & Marvel Studios ("Black Panther: Wakanda Forever")

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Domestic

Monday afternoon update: Disney’s weekend actuals for the film came in higher than expected, with $181.3M domestic.

Sunday update: Disney and Marvel Studios’ superhero sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever earned an estimated $180.0M this weekend. That’s about in line with pre-release projections, which hovered in the $170M-$205M range.

That opening is:

  • -10% behind 2018’s original Black Panther ($202.0M)
  • #13 biggest opening weekend of all time, between 2018’s Incredibles 2 ($182.6M) and 2016’s Captain America: Civil War ($179.1M)
  • #2 opening weekend of 2022 so far, behind only May’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($187.4M) and above June’s Jurassic World: Dominion ($145.0M)
  • The #1 November opening weekend of all time, beating the previous record, 2013’s The Hunger Games: Catching Fire ($158.0M)
  • #8 opening weekend in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), behind:
  1. 2019’s Avengers: Endgame ($357.1M)
  2. 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home ($260.1M)
  3. 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War ($257.6M)
  4. 2012’s The Avengers ($207.4M)
  5. 2018’s Black Panther ($202.0M)
  6. 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron ($191.2M)
  7. May’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($187.4M)

Wakanda is playing in 4,396 theaters. That’s the #24 widest release of all time, and #8 widest so far in 2022.

Its $40,946 per-theater average marks the #4 average of 2022 so far, behind only the opening weekends of March’s Everything Everywhere All at Once ($50,131), October’s The Banshees of Inisherin ($46,114), May’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($41,337),

Wakanda‘s domestic audience was an estimated 52% male and 63% ages 25+. (Disney didn’t break down the opening weekend demographics by race.)

Premium formats comprised 34% of the earnings, including 13% premium large format, 11% from 3D, and 8% from IMAX.

The title received an “A” CinemaScore. 

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Overseas

Opening in 50 overseas markets, including an early rollout on Wednesday in some territories, Wakanda opened with $180M, for a $330M global start.

That marks the MCU’s #11 global debut, though it comes in -5% behind 2018’s original Black Panther.

The previous installment would go on to earn $105.0M from China, although it opened there three weeks after its global debut. A Chinese release for the sequel has yet to be confirmed.

Wakanda’s top overseas markets to date include:

  1. U.K. ($15.0M)
  2. France ($13.7M)
  3. Mexico ($12.8M)
  4. South Korea ($8.9M)
  5. Brazil ($7.1M)
  6. Australia ($6.8M)
  7. India ($6.4M)
  8. Indonesia ($6.1M)
  9. Germany ($6.1M)
  10. Italy ($4.2M)

Black Adam

After taking the box office crown for the past three straight frames, the Warner Bros. DC Comics adaptation Black Adam fell -53% to $8.6M and second place.

Through 24 days, it’s now earned $151.1M. Compared to some comparable DC Comics adaptations through the equivalent point in release, that’s:

  • +15% above 2019’s Shazam! ($131.2M)
  • -47% below 2018’s Aquaman ($287.9M), even though its opening weekend was only +1% ahead of Adam

Compared to other comparable titles starring Dwayne Johnson through the equivalent point in release, Adam is running:

  • -42% below 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle ($262.2M)
  • -35% below 2019’s Jumanji: The Next Level ($235.9M)
  • -1% below 2016’s Moana ($153.2M), to the extent that the animated title is a valid comparison
  • +2% above 2019’s Hobbs & Shaw ($147.6M)
  • +13% above 2015’s San Andreas ($132.6M)
  • +78% above 2018’s Rampage ($84.8M)

Compared to comparable superhero titles from rival Marvel Studios which opened in the same range, Adam is running:

  • -22% behind 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings ($196.2M)
  • Less than +1% above 2021’s Eternals ($150.7M)

Overseas, Adam has earned $201.1M, for a $352.2M global total. Top market totals include:

  1. U.K. ($21.1M)
  2. France ($15.1M)
  3. Mexico ($13.9M)
  4. Brazil ($13.5M)
  5. Australia ($10.7M)

One Piece Film: Red

Last weekend, Crunchyroll’s anime title One Piece Film: Red opened in second place with $9.3M. In its sophomore frame, it falls -84% to $1.4M and eighth place.

That’s perhaps the steepest sophomore drop among prominent anime films of recent years, steeper than:

  • 2019’s Dragon Ball Super: Broly (-69%)
  • 2021’s Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train (-71%)
  • February 2020’s pre-pandemic My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising (-71%)
  • 2021’s My Hero Academia: World Heroes’ Mission (-74%)
  • March’s Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie (-75%)
  • August’s Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (-78%)

The Fabelmans

Ahead of its wide release over Thanksgiving weekend, Universal’s The Fabelmans debuted in four theaters in New York City and Los Angeles, Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical awards contender earned $160K, for a $40K per-theater average.

That’s the #5 average of 2022 so far, behind only the opening weekends of March’s Everything Everywhere All at Once ($50,131), October’s The Banshees of Inisherin ($46,114), May’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($41,337), and this weekend’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (estimated $40,000).

It’s possible that when weekend actuals are released Monday afternoon, The Fabelmans could also fall below the opening average of October’s TÁR ($39,655).

Weekend comparisons

Total box office this weekend came in around $207.9M, which is:

  • 3.6x last weekend’s total ($56.4M), when Black Adam led for a third consecutive frame with $18.2M.
  • +89% above the equivalent weekend in 2021 ($109.6M), when Eternals led with $71.2M.
  • +71% above the equivalent weekend in the last pre-pandemic year 2019 ($121.3M), when Midway opened with $17.8M.

This weekend’s box office total marks the #4 frame of 2022 so far, behind only:

  1. July 8-10 ($238.3M), led by Thor: Love and Thunder ($144.1M)
  2. May 6-8 ($222.3M), led by Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($187.4M)
  3. June 10-12 ($214.8M), led by Jurassic World: Dominion ($145.0M)

YTD comparisons

Year-to-date box office stands around $6.40B. That’s:

  • +97.7% this same point in the pandemic recovery year of 2021 ($3.24B), down from +98.5% after last weekend.
  • -32.7% behind this same point in 2019, the last pre-pandemic year ($9.52B), up from -33.9% last weekend. The peak was around -29.5%, set in mid-July.

Top distributors

  1. Universal ($1.40B)
  2. Paramount ($1.28B)
  3. Disney ($1.06B)
  4. Warner Bros. ($917.2M)
  5. Sony Pictures ($822.8M)

Sunday’s Studio Weekend Estimates:

Title  Estimated weekend  % change Locations Location change Average  Total  Weekend Distributor
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever $180,000,000   4,396   $40,946 $180,000,000 1 Walt Disney
Black Adam $8,600,000 -53% 3,603 -382 $2,387 $151,123,090 4 Warner Bros.
Ticket to Paradise $6,100,000 -29% 3,633 -433 $1,679 $56,512,445 4 Universal
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile $3,200,000 -5% 2,486 -519 $1,287 $40,839,609 6 Sony Pictures
Smile $2,330,000 -42% 2,271 -775 $1,026 $102,776,517 7 Paramount
Prey for the Devil $2,010,000 -48% 2,164 -816 $929 $16,961,244 3 Lionsgate
The Banshees of Inisherin $1,700,000 -17% 960 65 $1,771 $5,784,663 4 Searchlight Pictures
One Piece Film: Red $1,447,807 -84% 2,213 -154 $654 $12,768,073 2 Crunchyroll
Till $618,254 -67% 1,358 -778 $455 $8,038,426 5 United Artists
Armageddon Time $352,000 -56% 981 -25 $359 $1,582,570 3 Focus Features
TÁR $343,000 -53% 359 -731 $955 $4,523,473 6 Focus Features
The Woman King $260,000 -71% 513 -562 $507 $66,487,527 9 Sony Pictures
Triangle of Sadness $250,800 -41% 184 -303 $1,363 $3,519,637 6 Neon
The Fabelmans $161,000   4   $40,250 $161,000 1 Universal
Halloween Ends $147,000 -90% 503 -2,426 $292 $64,041,010 5 Universal
Aftersun $139,960 20% 92 47 $1,521 $535,023 4 A24
Minions: The Rise of Gru $86,000 -34% 211 -231 $408 $369,347,010 20 Universal
Amsterdam $53,000 -52% 170 -200 $312 $14,907,177 6 20th Century Studios
Barbarian $53,000 -24% 45 -115 $1,178 $40,811,903 10 20th Century Studios
The Bad Guys $45,000 -61% 128 -436 $352 $97,223,140 30 Universal
Meet Me in the Bathroom $28,123 -67% 20 16 $1,406 $222,718 2 Utopia
Holy Spider $20,023 4% 8 4 $2,503 $66,659 3 Utopia
RRR: Rise, Roar, Revolt $10,478 -4% 1   $10,478 $262,288 34 Sarigama Cinemas
All That Breathes $4,810   3   $1,603 $31,858 4 Submarine Deluxe
Running The Bases $3,500 -78% 8 -9 $438 $1,508,464 9 UP2U Films
Photo Credits: Disney & Marvel Studios ("Black Panther: Wakanda Forever")