Avengers Opening Weekend Breaks Record According To Early Estimates

Despite getting off to what some thought was a slow start during its midnight opening, The [...]

Despite getting off to what some thought was a slow start during its midnight opening, The Avengers has roared back at the box office with a vengeance. Many experts initially called The Avengers opening day at around $65 million, but the actual opening day number came in at $80.5 million. Early estimates were said to be off, because The Avengers picked up steam on late Friday. Now, Deadline is reporting that sources are telling them Saturday box office numbers for The Avengers are in the $60 million to $64 million range. Based on those Saturday numbers, The Avengers is now predicted to bring in between $175 million and $179 million during its opening weekend, which will break the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 opening weekend record of $169 million. Keep in mind, Deadline originally underestimated The Avengers opening day total by $13 million. If they are now reporting $60 million to $64 million for Saturday, then that is likely a minimum number and could rise. Comicbook.com spoke with a theater manager who said they were actually seeing an increase in Avengers ticket sales on Saturday over Friday. While Friday was somewhat slow during the early part of the day when kids were in school, Saturday was said to be strong right out of the gate. Free Comic Book Day could also be boosting Saturday ticket sales, as some fans plan a comic book movie outing as part of the Free Comic Book Day experience. Because The Avengers appears to be one of the rare blockbusters that lives up to the hype, some fans are also already going back for repeat viewings. Phenomenal buzz is also starting to attract people outside the normal demographic for superhero movies. All this adds up to it looking pretty likely that The Avengers will topple the boy wizard. Box Office Mojo is even reporting The Avengers has a legitimate shot at $200 million.

0comments