Doctor Strange 2 Wins Second Box Office Weekend, Suffers One of MCU's Steepest Falls

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will once again reign supreme at the box office. After scoring the second-best worldwide opening at the box office since the pandemic began, and the 7th-highest opening-day total ever, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness earned $16 million on its second Friday and is poised to add $61 million to its running total by Monday. The film is approaching $300 million at the domestic box office and $600 million worldwide. Yet, that's a 67% decline from its opening weekend. On one hand, that's to be expected from such a blockbuster opening weekend. On the other, it's up there with Black Widow as one of Marvel Studios' biggest dropoffs. Still, it's enough to take the fire out of Firestarter's disappointing opening weekend.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has been mostly well-liked by critics. ComicBook.com's Jenna Anderson called the film an "inventive" and "outrageous" turning point for the Marvel Cinematic Universe in her 4-out-of-5 review of the film:

"In the same way that Sam Raimi's Spider-Man helped cement what a modern superhero blockbuster could be, it feels like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is one of the first postmodern superhero blockbusters. The film is tasked with being both a worthy follow-up to the complicated, decade-long storylines of two of Marvel's most mystical characters, as well as the gonzo foray into what are sure to be many, many more multiversal stories within the MCU. By and large, the film succeeds on both fronts, and its few stumbles are still vastly more entertaining than they could be in the hands of a lesser cast and crew. While viewers' mileage about some of the specifics of Multiverse of Madness will surely vary, there's nothing wrong with that — and if anything, it only illustrates a small amount of how complex and weird Marvel's pop culture presence can become. What anchors the project throughout are incredibly strong performances, enticing references to decades of the larger Marvel world, and the most compelling directing choices that Phase 4 of the franchise has had. To put it simply, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is the MCU equivalent of a heaping plate of food at a buffet — it'll give you a lot to chew on for the moment, but it's only a small sampling of the delicious things that are out there."

What do you think? Let us know in the comments. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is playing now in theaters. A complete list of the top 10 films at the box office this weekend follows.