'Aquaman' on Track to Become Biggest DC Comics Movie Since 'The Dark Knight Rises'

At this point there's no more debating whether DC Entertainment and Warner bros. will have a hit on their hands with Aquaman - it's now more a question of just how big of a hit the film will be. Well, according to the latest box office tracking, Aquaman is on pace to be DC's biggest movie since Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises in 2012!

THR has the latest tracking on Aquaman, which is coming out of the weekend having tallied $748.8 million at the worldwide box office, and $188.8M domestically in just its first ten days in theaters. On the global scale, Aquaman is DC's most successful movie yet, having earned $560M. The film is now expected to surpass $900M+ by the end of its theatrical run, which will make it DC's biggest film since The Dark Knight Rises earned $1.09 billion. There's a chance that Aquaman could pass the $1B mark for a shot at the top spot, but that will take some continued strong holding power for the film to carry into the next weeks; so far, Aquaman is scoring well with both males, females, and families, so the holdover is possible.

Whether it reaches $1B or not, Aquaman is already going to be the most successful film to be released as part of the DC Extended Universe franchise. The DCEU has famously struggled since its launch with Man of Steel in 2013, with the films under Zack Snyder's oversight causing divisive controversy, while the DCEU's other recent solo-film franchise, Wonder Woman, being the other big outlier in terms of positive fan/critical response, and strong box office earnings.

If nothing else, both Wonder Woman and Aquaman signal that the heel-turn that DC/WB made after the stumbles of both Batman v Superman and Justice League is indeed working. The two solo film spinoffs have added a much more lighthearted and classic DC Comics heroic tone more akin to Marvel, while also redressing the classic heroes in new lights of diversity and global appeal. Aquaman's version of a Polynesian culture Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa), and Israeli star Gal Gadot as Princess Diana / Wonder Woman have helped the DCEU break from convention and attract a much wider worldwide audience - and generate much bigger box office returns. It seems like the stage is now set for the sequel film Wonder Woman 1984 to arrive next year on a renewed wave of DCEU hype.

Upcoming DC Extended Universe films include Aquaman on December 21st, Shazam on April 5, 2019, and Wonder Woman 2 on November 1, 2019.