The Batman Is Second-Biggest Box Office Opening of the Pandemic

Following strong preview night numbers, The Batman is headed to the second-best opening weekend at the box office since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Warner Bros.’s new Batman movie earned $57 million at the domestic box office on its first day (including preview showings). It is now expected to earn $128.5 million in its first weekend. That’s the fifth-best March movie opening ever, and the biggest opening of 2022 thus far. As far as Pandemic openings go, it trails only Sony and Marvel’s .

Compared to previous Batman movies, the last time Warner Bros. fully rebooted Batman with a standalone movie was Batman Begins in 2005, which earned $48 million in its first weekend. That’s not adjusting for inflation. The movie was also around 40 minutes shorter than The Batman and didn’t come with variable ticket pricing.

Ben Affleck’s debut as Batman in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice earned $166 million in its opening weekend,  benefitting from having both of DC’s most iconic characters in its title. It was also hyped for being Wonder Woman’s first live-action movie appearance, and DC’s first big-screen crossover. 

The Batman, with a healthy number of detractors. ComicBook.com’s Kofi Outlaw articulated this in his 4-out-of-5 review of the movie:

“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.”

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.

The Batman is taking up all the space at the box office this weekend. everyone. Jackass Forever, Death on the Nile, Scream, Uncharted, Dog, and even Spider-Man: No Way Home are all seeing significant dropoffs. The complete list of top 10 films at the box office this weekend follows.

1. The batman

• Opening Weekend
• Total: $128.5 million

Batman ventures into Gotham City’s underworld when a sadistic killer leaves behind a trail of cryptic clues. As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator’s plans become clear, he must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit and bring justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued the metropolis.

Matt Reeves directs The Batman. The film stars Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright, John Turturro, Peter Sarsgaard, Andy Serkis, and Colin Farrell.

2. Uncharted

• Week Three
• Weekend: $11 million
• Total: $100.2 million
  

Nathan Drake and his wisecracking partner Victor “Sully” Sullivan embark on a dangerous quest to find the greatest treasure never found while also tracking clues that may lead to Nate’s long-lost brother.

Ruben Fleischer directs Uncharted from a screenplay by Rafe Lee Judkins, Art Marcum, and Matt Holloway, based on Naughty Dog’s video game series. The film stars Tom Holland, Mark Wahlberg, Sophia Ali, Tati Gabrielle, and Antonio Banderas.

3. Dog

• Week Three
• Weekend: $6 million
• Total: $40 million
  

With a dog named Lulu by his side, Army Ranger Briggs races down the Pacific Coast to make it to a soldier’s funeral on time. Along the way, Briggs and Lulu drive each other completely crazy, break a handful of laws, narrowly evade death, and learn to let down their guards to have a fighting chance of finding happiness.

Channing Tatum and Reid Carolin directed Dog. Tatum also stars with Jane Adams, Kevin Nash, Q’orianka Kilcher, Ethan Suplee, Emmy Raver-Lampman, and Bill Burr.

4. Spider-Man: No Way Home

• Week 12
• Weekend: $4.7 million
• Total: $786.8 million
  

With Spider-Man’s identity now revealed, our friendly neighborhood web-slinger is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life as Peter Parker from the high stakes of being a superhero. When Peter asks for help from Doctor Strange, the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.

Jon Watts directed Spider-Man: No Way Home from a screenplay written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. The film stars Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jacob Batalon, Jon Favreau, Jamie Foxx, Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, Benedict Wong, Tony Revolori, and Marisa Tomei.

5. Death on the Nile

• Week Four
• Weekend: $2.7 million
• Total: $37 million
  

Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot’s Egyptian vacation aboard a glamorous river steamer turns into a terrifying search for a murderer when a picture-perfect couple’s idyllic honeymoon is tragically cut short.

Death on the Nile is an adaptation of Agatha Christie’s 1937 mystery novel of the same name. Kenneth Branagh directs and stars as Hercule Poirot. The cast also includes Tom Bateman, Annette Bening, Russell Brand, Ali Fazal, Dawn French, Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Rose Leslie, Emma Mackey, Sophie Okonedo, Jennifer Saunders, and Letitia Wright.

6. Sing 2

• Week 11
• Weekend: $1.52 million
• Total: $153.5 million
  

Can-do koala Buster Moon and his all-star cast of animal performers prepare to launch a dazzling stage extravaganza in the glittering entertainment capital of the world. There’s just one hitch — he has to find and persuade the world’s most reclusive rock star to join them. What begins as Buster’s dream of big-time success soon becomes an emotional reminder of the power of music to heal even the most broken heart.

Garth Jennings wrote and directed Sing 2, with Christophe Lourdelet co-directing. The film’s voice cast includes Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly, Nick Kroll, Jennings, Peter Serafinowicz, Jennifer Saunders, Nick Offerman, Bobby Cannavale, Pharrell Williams, Halsey, Chelsea Peretti, Letitia Wright, Eric André, Adam Buxton, and Bono.

7. Jackass Forever

• Week Five
• Weekend: $1.36 million
• Total: $54.4 million

Celebrate the joy of a perfectly executed shot to the groin as Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and the rest of the gang return for another round of hilarious, wildly absurd and often dangerous displays of stunts and comedy.

Jeff Tremaine directed Jackass Forever. It stars Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Dave England, Wee Man, Danger Ehren, and Preston Lacy.

8. Cyrano

• Week Two
• Weekend: $683,000
• Total: $2.57 million
  

Cyrano de Bergerac dazzles everyone with his ferocious wordplay and brilliant swordplay. However, he’s convinced his appearance renders him unworthy of the affections of the luminous Roxanne, a devoted friend who’s in love with someone else.

Joe Wright directs Cyrano from a screenplay by Erica Schmidt, based on her 2018 musical, inspired by the 1897 Edmond Rostand play Cyrano de Bergerac. It stars Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett, Kelvin Harrison Jr., and Ben Mendelsohn.

10. Gangubai Kathiawadi

• Week Two
• Weekend: $592,000
• Total: $1.7 million

Young Ganga is tricked by her boyfriend with the promise of a film career and persuaded to leave the countryside for Mumbai. In Mumbai her dreams of a film career come crashing down and she is lured to the underworld.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali directs Gangubai Kathiawadi. The film stars Alia Bhatt, Shantanu Maheshwari, Vijay Raaz, Indira Tiwari, and Seema Pahwa.

10. Scream

• Week Eight
• Weekend: $570,000
• Total: $80.2 million

Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, Calif., a new killer dons the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town’s deadly past.

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett direct Scream from a screenplay by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick. The film stars Melissa Barrera, Mason Gooding, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Marley Shelton, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, and Neve Campbell.