‘Black Widow’ Kills the Competition in Biggest Box Office Since the Pandemic

Black Widow, about the Marvel Avenger and super assassin Natasha Romanoff, killed all comers at the box office this weekend and on Disney+ pulling in over $80 million.

Variety: Disney and Marvel’s superhero adventure Black Widow captured a massive $80 million in its first weekend, crushing the benchmark for the biggest box office debut since the pandemic.

The film, starring Scarlett Johansson, is the first from the Marvel Cinematic Universe to open simultaneously in movie theaters and on Disney Plus, where subscribers can rent Black Widow for an extra $30. Disney reported that Black Widow generated more than $60 million “in Disney Plus Premier Access consumer spend globally,” marking the rare occasion in which a studio disclosed the profits made from streaming.

Directed by Cate Shortland, Black Widow collected an additional $78 million from 46 international territories, boosting its global box office haul to an impressive $158 million. Combined with Disney Plus numbers, the final weekend figure sits at $215 million. Curbing overall ticket sales, however, is the fact that Black Widow still doesn’t have a release date in China, which is an all-important moviegoing market for the Marvel franchise.