'Avengers: Endgame' Smashes Preview Record Set by 'The Force Awakens'
Box-office records before "Avengers: Endgame"? Dust!
The final "Avengers" movie (sob!) opened in North America with a record $60 million in Thursday night preview showings. That easily bests "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," which brought in $57 million in 2015 from Thursday night showings.
"Endgame" is playing in 4,600 North American theaters this weekend, the widest release of any movie at the domestic box office. And with many of those theaters open around the clock for back-to-back screenings, expect more records to fall.
The opening weekend is sure to shatter the record set by "Avengers: Infinity War," which launched last year with $257.7 million.
Overseas, "Endgame" is just as strong. It's taken in $305 million in its first two days of release in 46 markets, led by a stunning $154 million in China.
Despite its record running length, diehard fans are expected to catch more than one screening.
It currently holds a 96% Rotten Tomatoes score, the second best ever earned by a Marvel release after"Black Panther," which holds a franchise-best 97% rating.
It's too soon for a CinemaScore rating, but audiences have given it a very sold 93% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
[Via Variety]