Update: April 27, 2018
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR Scores Superhero-Best $39 Million in Thursday Previews
Disney and Marvel's
Avengers: Infinity War earned $39 million in Thursday previews at the North-American box office, the best showing of any superhero film in history and the fourth-best preview gross of all time, not adjusting for inflation.
Infinity War is opening in most major territories around the globe timed to its U.S. release, excluding Russia (May 3) and China (May 11), and could approach $500 million worldwide by the end of Sunday. It's already earned a massive $95 million in its first two days, setting industry records in many territories.
In terms of superhero fare, The Dark Knight was the previous preview champ in North America ($30.6 million), followed by Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice ($27.7 million). More recently, fellow Marvel title Black Pantherdevoured $25.2 million in previews on its way to a $202 million domestic debut.
The two top preview gross films of all time are fellow Disney titles Star Wars: The Force Awakens ($57 million) and Star Wars: The Last Jedi ($45 million), followed by Warner Bros.' final installment in the Harry Potter series ($43.5 million).
Infinity War's Thursday night performance confirms it is going to be a box-office giant. It's tracking to open to $225 million-plus domestically, but most expect it to climb much higher. The superhero film even has a shot at passing up
The Force Awakens ($248 million) to land the top North American opening in history.
The success of Disney and Marvel's
Black Panther could be a huge boost for
Infinity War.
Black Panther has earned $681 million in North America to become the No. 3 film of all time behind
Force Awakens ($936.7 million) and
Avatar ($760.5 million). Globally, it has earned $1.325 billion to rest at No. 10 of the all-time biggest earners.
Overseas,
Infinity War scored the biggest opening day in a slew of markets, including South Korea — where it has earned $11.4 million in its first two days.
Box Office: 'Avengers: Infinity War' Scores Superhero-Best $39 Million in Thursday Previews