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Aquaman Outpacing Justice League’s Box Office, Targeting $54 Million Second Weekend

December 28, 2018 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas
Aquaman Arthur Mera Image Credit: Warner Bros.

Aquaman is proving to be quite the success and is already outpacing Justice League at the box office. The DC Extended Universe film added $14.6 million to its coffers on Thursday, bringing its first-week domestic total to $137.2 millikon. By comparison, Justice League ended its first week with $130.8 million despite opening with $93.8 million, more than Aquaman’s $67.4 million.

There is a caveat to that, of course. Aquaman’s rocking its way through the post-Christmas period, where every day plays like a Saturday. (Justice League opened in mid-November of 2017.) Still, the undersea film is performing strongly even considering the holiday season. Industry analysts have the film targeting a $54 million second weekend, which would put it at $194.2 million by Sunday. That puts it within easy striking distance of Justice League’s $229 million final domestic gross.

The DC film is also killing it overseas. Aquaman has $492.2 million overseas, making it the second-highest grossing film in the franchise internationally behind only Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’s $543.3 million. The $160 million-budgeted film will be easily profitable during its theatrical run, and will give the franchise a rebound hit after Justice League fell short.