To the surprise of no one except the absolute worst human beings on the internet,Captain Marvelblasted straight off the runway and is looking at a downright heroic opening. The film, starring Oscar-winnerBrie Larsonas the long-awaited comic book heroine Carol Danvers, hauled in $61.4 million on Friday night. (Counting its stellar $20.7 millionThursday night previews.) Reports haveCaptain Marvel’s total weekend tally somewhere between $150-160 million, which would be the seventh largest debut in the 21-movie MCU behind only the threeAvengersfilms,Black Panther,Captain America: Civil War, andIron Man 3.
A prequel set in the 1990s,Captain Marvelmarks the big-screen debut for the character after the character was teased in the post-credits scene ofAvengers: Infinity War. A human being with the training of a Kree warrior and no memories of her time on Earth, Danvers arrives back on her home planet to stop an invasion of Skrulls—shape-shifting aliens led byBen Mendelsohn’s Talos—with the help of a young Nick Fury (played by a digitally de-agedSamuel L. Jackson).
Not only is Captain Marvel most likely headed toAvengers: Endgameto save all our asses from the Thanos, she’s already saved the severely struggling 2019 box office. Even at the lower end of the estimates,Captain Marvelwould easily mark the best opening of the year, more than doubling the previous title holderHow to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’s $55 million debut. To put it in perspective, the highest-grossing movie of the yearoverallisM. Night Shyamalan’sGlass, which has brought in $109 million over seven weeks;Captain Marvelis poised to beat that in a single weekend.
The Marvel effect on the rest of the box office is palpable, too, as the rest of the top 5 took one heck of a beating.How to Train Your Dragoncame in a distant second with $3.3 million, followed byTyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeralat $3.2 million. Then after anothermonumentalleap,Alita: Battle AngelandThe LEGO Movie 2: The Second Partboth tied at a mere $800,000, followed byIsn’t It Romanticat $700,000.
Take a look at Friday’s numbers below and check back tomorrow for full weekend estimates. (Numbers viaBox Office Mojo)
Captain Marvel
$61,382,000
How to Train Your Dragon: The Lost World
$3,335,000
$108,301,125
Tyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeral
$3,240,000
$37,069,810
Alita: Battle Angel
$75,946,064
The LEGO Movie: The Second Part
$94,084,961
