Marvel’s ‘Black Widow’ Surpasses $215 Million Across Theatres and Streaming

It may be hard to believe, but before the release of Cate Shortland‘s Black Widow, the last time we got a movie in the decade-spanning Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, directed by Jon Watts.

Marvel had originally planned to release Black Widow in 2020, but it ended up getting delayed numerous times as a result of the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic across the globe.

But now with movie theatres across the globe finally being opened and with a brand new Marvel film out there in the world, it was apparent that audiences and fans alike would flock to the theatres to see the newest superhero adventure.

Black Widow – which stars Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, and Rachel Weisz with a script from Eric Pearson – has raked in an incredibly impressive $215 million globally this weekend, including $80 million in domestic box offices, $78 million in international box offices, and $60 million as part of Disney+’s Premium Access program.

This is no small feat to be sure. In fact, Black Widow now holds the title of the largest domestic box office opening since the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the largest opening weekend since J.J. Abrams‘ Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker in December of 2019.

The combined theatrical and Disney+ Premium Access opening also makes Black Widow the only film to surpass $100 million in domestic consumer spend on opening weekend since the start of the pandemic.

Not only that, but it is also the highest domestic opening weekend for a Marvel Cinematic Universe solo/origin story after the release of both Ryan Coogler‘s Black Panther and Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck‘s Captain Marvel.

“Once again, Marvel has delivered an exceptional film to the delight of fans worldwide with Black Widow achieving numerous milestones in the current marketplace,” said Kareem Daniel, Chairman, Disney Media, and Entertainment Distribution. “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+.” 

Whether you like superhero-related movies or not, one thing is for sure – audiences all around the world are extremely eager to see Natasha Romanoff’s swan song in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.