The hierarchy of power at the box office is about to change. Warner Bros.’ “Black Adam” looks to claim the top spot on domestic charts, ahead of fellow new release “Ticket to Paradise.”
The Dwayne Johnson vehicle landed a $26.8 million opening day, including $7.6 million in Thursday previews. The DC Comics adaptation is debuting 4,402 locations in North America.
Some competitors are projecting the DC Comics adaptation will gross $62.2 million in its opening weekend, which would mark the first wide release to debut above $50 million since Disney’s “Thor: Love and Thunder” bowed to $144 million in July. Moviegoing has largely slowed down since an auspiciously busy summer season and theaters have been clamoring for a fall release to shock up some foot traffic like “Black Adam” has.
Measuring against other DC Films productions, a $62 million opening weekend for “Black Adam” would rank between those netted by 2018’s “Aquaman” ($67 million) and 2019’s “Shazam!” ($53 million). Both of those films also introduced new characters to audiences, managing some healthy multipliers and strong overseas performances — enough to justify sequels anyways, both due out in 2023.
With a $195 million production budget, the weeks ahead remain imperative for determining the box office success for “Black Adam.” The film won’t face much heavyweight competition until Marvel’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” hits theaters on Nov. 11. But it could run into some problems with less -than-stellar word-of-mouth.
“Black Adam” has been largely dismissed in reviews, earning a 30% approval rating from top critics on review-aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes. Among the broader base of approved critics, the film possesses an improved though still substandard 41%. Variety chief film critic Peter Debruge wrote that “the surprisingly serious-minded (but still plenty pulpy) project deprives Johnson of his greatest superpower — his sense of humor — while giving the now-straight-faced star a chance to play a character with some interesting contradictions.”
Audiences are being much more receptive — par for the course in terms of superhero movies. “Black Adam” earned a “B+” rating through research firm Cinema Score, indicating generally favorable opinions among ticket buyers. That’s the same grade earned by Marvel’s two releases so far this year, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” and “Thor: Love and Thunder,” both of which opened higher but held less strongly than their more warmly received series predecessors.
Produced by New Line Cinema, Seven Bucks Productions, Flynn Picture Company and DC Films, “Black Adam” follows a godlike being who reawakens after 5,000 years and is really pissed off. The Justice Society of America tries to soothe his temper. Along with Johnson’s anti-hero, the film’s lineup of heroes also features Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher and Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone.
“Ticket to Paradise,” on the other hand, is a rom-com starring Roberts and Clooney as two exes who are forced to reconcile when they find out their daughter (Kaitlyn Dever) plans to marry someone she just met. It’s already been a hit overseas, earning $72.6 million so far.
More to come…