Tuesday is discount day in North American theaters, and Superman scored the biggest Tuesday of the year with a whopping $17.1 million haul.
With that, it's crossed $155 million at the domestic box office and is nearing $300 million worldwide (we'll have updated international numbers for you soon). $17.1 million is a bigger Tuesday than 2013's Man of Steel—adjusted for inflation, this time—and the movie should hit $175 million after its first seven days in theaters.
Superman is also outpacing 2022's The Batman, and a final domestic gross of $350 million by the end of its run seems likely. This $17.1 million also breaks the record set by Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016; the Zack Snyder-helmed team-up earned $12.2 million for what was then the biggest Tuesday ever for a movie featuring Kal-El.
Variety has also shared an update on Superman's second weekend, revealing that after its $125 million opening weekend, the DC Studios reboot is eyeing $55 million - $62 million this Friday to Sunday in the U.S.
Positive reviews and strong word of mouth will help it secure a decent 50% - 55% drop, but those international numbers will be critical to its overall success. Superman doesn't mean quite as much to the rest of the world as he does to America, and almost every movie featuring the hero has performed better in the U.S. than overseas.
With The Fantastic Four: First Steps right around the corner, Superman doesn't have long to make that $225 million prediction budget back.
Looking beyond that, the trade points out, "just because moviegoers are showing up for Superman, one of the most recognizable heroes on the planet, doesn’t mean there will automatically be interest in the cinematic adventures of comparatively unknown comic book characters" (referring to next year's Supergirl and Clayface movies).
Superman doesn't have much in the way of direct competition this weekend, at least, as I Know What You Did Last Summer should open to $15 million - $17 million. Smurfs, meanwhile, looks set for a soft $10 million - $12 million start.
"Superman is an indescribable joy," we said in our review. "A beautiful, moving thrill, David Corenswet is the perfect Man of Steel in a movie packed full of ideas. Fortunately, under James Gunn’s expert direction, all of those work, creating a rousing experience that flies higher than DC has in a very long time."
Superman is now playing in theaters.