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‘Black Widow’ $80-million domestic debut is the biggest since the pandemic began

A closeup of Scarlett Johansson in costume with smoke in the background.
Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff in a scene from Marvel Studio’s “Black Widow.”
(Marvel Studios)
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Marvel’s “Black Widow,” the highly anticipated solo outing for veteran Avenger Natasha Romanoff, opened in first place this weekend with $80 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales.

The result is the largest North American box office opening since the pandemic began more than a year ago.

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The strong debut is a sign of a recovery in the cinema business, although ticket sales remain well below pre-pandemic levels as theaters have stepped up efforts to lure back movie patrons.

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The film, which premiered simultaneously in theaters and on Disney+ premier access, took in more than $215 million globally with more than $60 million of that revenue coming from Disney+ alone. “Black Widow” pulled in $78 million in 46 international markets.

The simultaneous streaming release — available for $30 — represents one of the biggest tests yet of consumers’ willingness to visit a theater for a movie they could watch at home.

Theaters have traditionally feared that so-called day-and-date releases would weaken box office sales, but the health crisis has forced Disney and other studios to experiment with new hybrid distribution strategies.

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Disney’s disclosure is unusual because studios don’t typically report premium video-on-demand figures for film openings.

“Black Widow’s strong performance this weekend affirms our flexible distribution strategy of making franchise films available in theaters for a true cinematic experience and, as COVID concerns continue globally, providing choice to consumers who prefer to watch at home on Disney+,” Kareem Daniel, chairman of Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution, said in a statement.

Directed by Cate Shortland, “Black Widow” was well received, with an A-minus CinemaScore and an 80% “fresh” rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.

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“It’s incredible to see audiences enjoying ‘Black Widow’ after two years without a new Marvel Studios film,” Disney Studios Chairman Alan Bergman said in a statement. “This spectacular opening weekend shows just how eager fans have been to see this beloved Avenger in her own story.”

“Black Widow” is the only film to cross the $100-million mark in its opening weekend since the start of the pandemic.

Universal’s “F9,” which opened to $70 million a few weeks ago, was the previous highest-grossing film in North America during the pandemic. Unlike “Black Widow,” which is playing on 4,100 screens, the ninth “Fast & Furious” movie was exclusively in theaters.

Like other big movies, the release date for “Black Widow” was delayed more than a year because of the pandemic, which kept indoor theaters closed for most of the last 12 months.

The combined theatrical and Disney+ premier access opening puts the film squarely between “Black Panther” ($202 million) and “Captain Marvel” ($153.4 million) in terms of biggest domestic opening weekend for a Marvel origin story and marks the largest domestic opening since “Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker” opened in theaters in December 2019 to $177.4 million.

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Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

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