Marvel Studios “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
Disney
Disney’s “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” collected $17.5 million in Thursday night previews on its way to a $100 million opening weekend.
The latest Marvel Cinematic Universe film is the first participant in the fifth phase of the franchise, the middle phase of the Multiverse Saga.
“Quantumania” numbers are on pace with 2017’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” which went on to collect $147 million during its opening. Earlier, 2015’s “Ant-Man” took in $6 million on Thursday before grossing $57 million in its three-day run. 2018’s “Ant-Man and the Wasp” earned $12 million in its Thursday debut and $76 million on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Thursday previews are included in the opening weekend total.
“‘Quantumania’ is on track to be the best February box office opener in five years,” said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com.
Hype surrounding the big screen debut of Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) will likely help drive traffic to theaters this weekend. Which is one of the next MCU, as teased when it debuted in the Disney+ series “Loki” last year.
In addition, Robbins noted that moviegoers are already enjoying the more expensive premium theater experience for tentpole films like “Quantumania,” and that may increase ticket sales.
Poor critical reviews of the film will not deter moviegoers. The film has a 47% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from verified critics, as of Friday evening, but an 84% score from audiences. “Quantumania” is one of only two MCU films to yield a “rotten” rating on the review aggregator.
Disney also announced Friday that it is delaying the release of “The Marvels,” a movie centered around Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau, through November 10. The film was previously set to debut on July 28.
It’s unclear why the studio is pushing the release, but it could be an attempt to distract from the Marvel universe. “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” is scheduled to be released on May 5. In addition, the company has several TV series that will air on Disney + in the next 12 to 18 months.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal owns Rotten Tomatoes.