"The red capes are coming, the red capes are coming..."
Warner Bros.' Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice has shattered the record for biggest March opening in history with $166.1 million over the Easter weekend, passing Lionsgate's The Hunger Games. However, the official numbers have revealed that it falls just short of being Warner Bros.' biggest opening ever, which is a record still held by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 and its $169.2 million opening back in 2011. Overseas, the critically panned Zack Snyder-directed feature collected another $254 million, bringing its worldwide sum to just around $420 million, which is still the fourth biggest global opening of all-time. It's also the biggest opening for a DC Comics movie ever, topping Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, and the biggest comic book movie opening ever, however it should be noted that Marvel's The Avengers & Iron Man 3 both opened bigger domestically and unlike Batman v Superman, were released overseas on varying dates, including later releases in the ever-growing market of China.
Fans have certainly shown up in droves to prove critics wrong, but with reports estimating that the film may need roughly $900 million to breakeven, it'll be interesting to see how long the film's legs are in the coming weeks and when it inevitably passes the milestone $1 billion mark, how far it can go after that.
Elsewhere, 20th Century Fox's critically acclaimed runaway blockbuster Deadpool, which starred Ryan Reynolds as the titular Merc with a Mouth, is now the highest grossing R-rated film of all-time, passing The Matrix Reloaded and is now inching toward passing $750 million worldwide. The Tim Miller-directed film currently stands at $745.9 million globally ($349.4M domestic, $396.5M internationally) and should pass the $750M mark by the end of the week, if not sooner. Not a bad turnout for a film that reportedly cost only $58 million to make and is about a borderline psychopath.
So, what do you guys think? Sound off with your thoughts below!
Fearing the actions of a god-like Super Hero left unchecked, Gotham City's own formidable, forceful vigilante takes on Metropolis's most revered, modern-day savior, while the world wrestles with what sort of hero it really needs. And with Batman and Superman at war with one another, a new threat quickly arises, putting mankind in greater danger than it's ever known before.
Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice will feature:
Director: Zack Snyder
Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman
Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne/Batman
Amy Adams as Lois Lane
Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor
Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman
Diane Lane as Martha Kent
Laurence Fishburne as Perry White
Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth
Holly Hunter as Senator Finch
Tao Okamoto as Mercy Graves
Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry/Aquaman
Ezra Miller as Barry Allen/The Flash
Ray Fisher as Victor Stone/Cyborg
Harry Lennix as General Swanwick
Christina Wren as Major Carrie Farris
Michael Shannon as General Zod
Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Thomas Wayne
Lauren Cohan as Martha Wayne
Robin Atkin Downes as Doomsday
Carla Gugino as the voice of the ship
Scoot McNairy as Wallace Keefe
Callan Mulvey as Anatoli Knyazev
Michael Cassidy as Jimmy Olsen
Michael Shannon as General Zod
Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent
Jena Malone in an unspecified role
Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice hits theaters March 25