You've seen Deadpool vs. Wolverine, but this weekend at the North American box office will be all about Ryan Reynolds vs. Blake Lively!
You might have noticed Reynolds and Hugh Jackman helping to promote Lively's new movie, an adaptation of Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us, and Deadline believes it will open with at least $30 million based on ticket presales. However, some exhibitors are convinced it will go as high as $40 million - $50 million.
And that could be a problem for Deadpool & Wolverine.
During its third weekend in theaters, the expectation is that the Marvel Studios threequel will earn roughly $50 million. The R-Rated blockbuster has exceeded expectations thus far, but should It Ends With Us do the same (and there's a huge amount of interest in the film), then the Merc with the Mouth and Logan could slip to #2 at the domestic box office.
If it does happen, then it won't matter too much because Deadpool & Wolverine is already the highest-grossing R-Rated movie ever in the U.S. and is currently projected to finish its global run with $1.2 billion - $1.4 billion.
One movie which won't pose a threat to either of these titles is Eli Roth's Borderlands. Despite boasting an A-List cast which includes Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Cate Blanchett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ariana Greenblatt, Edgar Ramirez, and Gina Gershon, it's eying a dismal $15 million debut.
Deadpool director Tim Miller stepped in to direct Borderlands' reshoots due to a supposed scheduling conflict for Roth, though rumours have continued to persist about there being issues behind the scenes.
The first Borderlands social media reactions have not been good either. You can read those here.
In our review Deadpool & Wolverine last month - which you can read by clicking here - we concluded by saying, "A contender for the best superhero movie ever, Deadpool & Wolverine is two hours of Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman proving they were born to play these roles and, crucially, be part of the MCU. It’s a f***ing masterpiece."
Shawn Levy directs Deadpool & Wolverine, which stars Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, Morena Baccarin, Rob Delaney, Leslie Uggams, Karan Soni, Matthew Macfadyen, and Dafne Keen. The movie is written by Ryan Reynolds & Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick & Zeb Wells & Shawn Levy.
Kevin Feige, Reynolds, Levy and Lauren Shuler Donner produce with Louis D’Esposito, Wendy Jacobson, Mary McLaglen, Josh McLaglen, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, George Dewey, Simon Kinberg and Jonathon Komack Martin serving as executive producers.
Deadpool & Wolverine is now playing in theaters.