411 Box Office Report: Thunderbolts* Reigns With $76 Million Opening

Marvel opened atop the box office once again this weekend as Thunderbolts* stormed its way to #1. The MCU antihero-team up film led the way with a solid-enough $76 million start. That’s slightly above the $70 million to $73 million that most predictions had for it going into the weekend.

There’s a lot to unpack here – and a lot that will be said, right or wrong, across the internet. To start with, on the surface that doesn’t look like a great number. The film has the lowest opening for an MCU film since The Marvels fell flat in November of 2023 at $46.1 million. It’s a lower start than Captain America: Brave New World, which opened to $88.8 million in mid-February before it ultimately eked just past the breakeven line. And it’s much lower than Deadpool & Wolverine’s $211.4 million start last July.

None of that sounds great, though there are some caveats. First off, Captain America and D&W both traded on established character names in the MCU. Fewer people know Yelena, Red Guardian, John Walker and Ghost (although Bucky is better known). Sure, you can argue that Marvel did the same with Guardians of the Galaxy, but that was in the period where the franchise could do no wrong. We’re now in the days where phrases like “Marvel slump” are in the lexicon, and you can’t just open a film to auto-hit numbers based on the brand.

It also has to be noted that Thunderbolts* has a benefit that Brave New World didn’t – people really like it. Thunderbolts* was at the mid-$60 million range in the first tracking estimates, but the positive buzz around the film pushed things higher. The critic reviews are excellent on the whole with an 88% Rotten Tomatoes critic aggregate, the best for the MCU since Spider-Man: No Way Home in December of 2021. And audiences like it too, with an A- CinemaScore (better than Brave New World’s B-) and a 94% RT audience rating.

Those numbers are relevant because they should help Thunderbolts* have a better hold than Brave New World, which hit a 2.26 multiple of its opening weekend. Something more akin to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 should be more on point, and if that’s the case it would put the film at around $230 million domestically. That would be a respectable number, and the domestic totals are expected to be higher than the American-centric Brave New World. Thus far the film has grabbed $86.1 million internationally for a $162.1 million worldwide total. It will fight its way to some profit against its $180 million production budget if it can post decent holds, showing that Marvel can still find some success with its lesser-known characters.

Sinners fell a spot to #2 in its third week, though it remains incredibly strong with a drop of just 28% to $33 million. Ryan Coogler’s period vampire film has now totaled $179.7 million domestically and $236.7 million worldwide, a bona fide hit even against a $90 million budget. The film is the second highest-grossing R-rated vampire film of all-time, behind only I Am Legend which took in $256.4 million domestically. Sinners is likely to come close to that number by the end of its run.

A Minecraft Movie was down 40% in its fifth weekend, grossing $13.7 million for the frame. Warner Bros.’ video game adaptation is also a massive hit with $398.2 million domestically and $873.4 million worldwide, with a probable $440 million domestic total by the time it closes out. Its budget was $150 million.

The Accountant 2 took a hit in its second weekend against the competition, down 61% to bring in $9.5 million. That’s much higher than the 45% drop that the first film saw in its sophomore weekend. The Accountant 2 will still be fine as it just has to cover marketing and distribution costs per Amazon’s estimation; it has $41.2 million stateside and $54.4 million worldwide and will finish off with around $60 million in the US. The production budget was $80 million, which Amazon will make back once it its Prime Video.

Until Dawn had a decent enough hold, grossing $3.8 million in its second weekend. That’s a 53% drop from last weekend’s numbers, about where The Woman In the Yard held (52%) and slightly better than Drop’s 55% sophomore drop. It’s much better than the 70% drop for Wolf Man in January. Until Dawn has $14.4 million domestically and $34.8 million worldwide, looking solid against a $15 million budget. It should finish a little over $20 million in the US.

The Amateur was down 51% in its fourth weekend, adding $1.8 million to its domestic total. The action-thriller sits at $36.9 million in the US and $87.7 million worldwide against a $40 million budget and will eke out a tiny bit of profit 20th Century Studios. The US total should end up around $42 million.

The King of Kings continued to drift away after its first two strong weekends, down 61% in its fourth frame with $1.7 million. The film is a profit with ease, sitting at $57.7 million domestically and $62.3 million. It won’t get much higher, with a probable endgame of about $60 million.

A24’s Warfare took in another $1.3 million, down 50%, to bring its totals to $24.1 million domestically and $28.5 million worldwide against a $20 million budget. The profit here will come through home viewing, with the final domestic total around $27 million.

A couple of Indian films closed out the top 10 First up is HIT: The 3rd Case which came in at $9 with $955,000. The action-thriller has scored decent reviews and is moderately well-liked by audiences, who gave it a 73% RT audience rating. The worldwide total is $9.7 million against a $7.1 million budget and it should be in fine shape once its Indian box office run completes.

Coming in at #10 was the Punjabi-language historical drama Guru Nanak Jahaz. The Omjee Group-distributed film has received a solid critical appraisal. No word on its overseas numbers as of yet, nor its budget

Next weekend will see Thunderbolts* stay at #1 with a lack of serious competition for it. Opening next frame are horror flick Clown In a Cornfield, Vertical Entertainment’s action-thriller Fight or Flight, Briarcliff’s Juliet & Romeo, and Lionsgate’s Shadow Force. None of them are expected to open above $3 million.

BOX OFFICE TOP TEN (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)
1. Thunderbolts* – $76 million ($76 million total, $162.1 million WW)
2. Sinners – $33 million ($179.7 million total, $236.7 million WW)
3. A Minecraft Movie – $13.7 million ($398.2 million total, $873.4 million WW)
4. The Accountant 2 – $9.5 million ($41.2 million total, $54.4 million WW)
5. Until Dawn – $3.8 million ($14.4 million total, $34.8 million WW)
6. The Amateur – $1.8 million ($36.9 million total, $87.7 million WW)
7. The King of Kings – $1.7 million ($57.7 million total, $62.3 million WW)
8. Warfare – $1.3 million ($24.1 million total, $28.5 million WW)
9. HIT: The 3rd Case – $955,000 ($955,000 total, $9.7 million WW)
10. Guru Nanak Jahaz – $685,000 ($685,000 total, $685,000 WW)