The Batman Headed to $66 Million Second Weekend at the Box Office

After the second-biggest opening weekend since the pandemic began, The Batman will see a solid second weekend at the box office. Warner Bros.'s latest Batman reboot will earn around $66 million this weekend, dropping about half of its opening weekend total, which is pretty good for a blockbuster. Its domestic box office total will grow to around $238.5 million by the end of the weekend. The Batman received strong reviews from fans and critics. ComicBook.com's Kofi Outlaw awarded the film a 4-out-of-5 review:

"As a reboot, The Batman is a very good re-introduction of the Batman movie franchise, but one that feels like a victim of circumstance. It seems like there was originally a clear deeper thematic point in mind – until the entire world took a chaotic downward spiral. The most we now get from The Batman is a final message of, 'Hey, things are really messed up, but, uh, let's try to help one another, okay?' Given current circumstances around the world (at the time of writing this), maybe that's the only message a superhero movie can manage right now."

The Batman's success may affect the trajectory of future DC Comics movies. "The secret of the movie business is quality. It's the best business strategy for both theatrical motion pictures and superhero movies," Warner Bros. Pictures chairman Toby Emmerich told Deadline on the heels of The Batman's impressive opening weekend. "The movies don't have to all have the same tone, or interlock with other DC movies, or have an Easter egg that sets up another film. Quality is the most important factor for a studio, and the biggest thing you can do to influence quality is the filmmaker that you hire."

Warner Bros. is already turning The Batman into a mini-franchise. A previously announced series focusing on the Gotham City police of this universe has been scrapped and will instead focus on Arkham Asylum. HBO Max ordered a series starring Colin Farrell as The Penguin. 

"We are thrilled to bring audiences a new version of this iconic DC character that they have never seen before. It is incredible to be working with Matt, Dylan and Lauren on continuing this story and to see Colin take his already exceptional performance in The Batman to the next level," said Sarah Aubrey, Head of Original Content, HBO Max.

Matt Reeves directed The Batman. Robert Pattinson stars as Bruce Wayne,  with Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as the Riddler, Colin Farrell as the Penguin, and Barry Keoghan as a surprising mystery character. A full list of top 10 films at the box office this weekend follows.