'Black Panther' Forecasted For $120 Million Opening Weekend

Marvel's Black Panther is now projected open to an impressive $120 million at the domestic box office.

The first standalone film featuring Chadwick Boseman's Wakandan king will be in theaters mid-February, where the only other comic book movie which has found success was Deadpool. Deadpool opened on February 12, 2016 to $132 million, a number which might be closer to where Black Panther lands than BoxOffice Pro's current projections.

"Black Panther's initial presales blew past mid-range expectations earlier this week," BoxOffice Pro reports. "While caution remains prudent as fans rush to grab tickets for the hotly anticipated Marvel film, the film's current sales activity combined with a surge of social media momentum now has the it definitively tracking closer to our high-end expectations."

As Black Panther approaches, the projections will likely continue to rise.

For comparison, Black Panther opening at a $120 million mark domestically would be a hugely impressive feat. Only one first entry to a standalone franchise has exceeded the $100 million mark for Marvel Studios properties and it was Spider-Man: Homecoming over the summer of 2017. Homecoming, which had the same advantage as Black Panther in having its titular hero introduced in Captain America: Civil War, pulled in $117 million in its first weekend.

Iron Man topped $98 million in its first three days. Captain America: The First Avenger and the first Thor movie both earned $65 million in their opening weekends. Guardians of the Galaxy pulled in an unexpected $94 million in its first weekend and, more recently, Doctor Strange earned $85 million in its first weekend.

Black Panther is directed by Creed helmer Ryan Coogler. The film stars Chadwick Boseman, Danai Gurira, Andy Serkis, Michael B. Jordan, and Lupita Nyong'o. It is the 18th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe which launched 10 years ago with Iron Man and directly precedes the massive Avengers: Infinity War ensemble.

Black Panther hits theaters February 16, 2018. Avengers: Infinity War opens in theaters on May 4, 2018. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Black Panther on February 16, 2018, Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6, 2018, Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2020.