Doctor Strange Opens Ahead Ant-Man, Thor: The Dark World & More

It looks like Doctor Strange is off to a magical start. The highly anticipated film hit theaters last night for its Thursday night previews ahead of its official release today, and fans flooded their local cinemas to see the mind-bending movie. The numbers are in, and it seems like Doctor Strange raked in more preview cash than Thor: The Dark World, Ant-Man, X-Men: Apocalypse, and more.

Last night, Doctor Strange grossed more than $9.4 million dollars in theaters across North America. That number shatters the earnings of films such as X-Men: Apocalypse at $8.2 million, Thor: The Dark World as $7.1 million, and Ant-Man at $6.4 million.

The movie's preview gross also outranked films like Iron Man 2, Captain America: The First Avenger, and Thor.

Abroad, Doctor Strange is now sitting at a cool $132 million dollars. When the Marvel Cinematic Universe film debuted to foreign audiences, the film was met with critical praise from markets like South Korea and the U.K. Its international opening raked in more than $87.7 million dollars, a figure which outdid the film's more modest box-office predictions.

In the state, industry professionals believe Doctor Strange is poised to rake in between $65-70 million. The movie is set to roll out in more than 3,800 U.S. theaters, and Doctor Strange will debut in Brazil and China as well.

While that estimation is a hefty one, it is not enough to challenge the domestic openings of several Marvel films like Thor: The Dark World and Guardians of the Galaxy. The former film raked in more than $85.7 million when it premiered while the latter smashed records with its $94.3 million debut. Doctor Strange is expected to do better than Ant-Man as the family-friendly superhero flick opened to $57.2 million.

If you are still on the fence about seeing Doctor Strange, then you can check out ComicBook.com's Review Roundup for the psychedelic flick here.

From Marvel comes DOCTOR STRANGE, the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident robs him of the use of his hands. When traditional medicine fails him, he is forced to look for healing, and hope, in an unlikely place – a mysterious enclave known as Kamar-Taj. He quickly learns that this is not just a center for healing but also the front line of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Before long Strange – armed with newly acquired magical powers – is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it all behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence. Join Strange on his dangerous, mystifying, and totally mind-bending journey.

The cast features Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Star Into Darkness, The Imitation Game), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), Rachel McAdams (Sherlock Holmes), Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man), Mads Mikkelsen (Casino Royale) and Tilda Swinton (The Grand Budapest Hotel).

Marvel's Doctor Strange is in theaters today.

[H/T] Coming Soon