The Doctor Strange sequel saw the long-awaited return of Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, and Chiwetel Ejiofor, reprising their roles from the 2016 Marvel Studios film. New additions to the Multiverse of Madness cast included Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez and Elizabeth Olsen as the Scarlet Witch. The time-bending project also marked a return to the genre for director Raimi, who directed the groundbreaking Tobey Maguire-led Spider-Man trilogy in the early 2000s.
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Per Deadline, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness started the weekend well, generating $90 million by the end of its opening night this past Friday. The film’s box office numbers dipped slightly throughout Saturday but still managed to end the night with a solid $57.5 million outing. The Cumberbatch-led film earned $39 million on Sunday, bringing its domestic total to $187 million. Globally, the film earned $450 million, adding in $265 million from the international box office.
The sequels opening weekend performance marked a proverbial return for Marvel Studios, whose last two debuts exceeded $100 million domestically. Before Spider-Man: No Way Home posted a $260 million opening, Marvel Studios struggled to cross the $100 million thresholds with projects such as Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Eternals. The drop in audience attendance undoubtedly impacted the films due to the pandemic, but the mediocre box office performances were not synonymous with the Marvel Studios brand.
Things, however, seem to be falling back into form as the newest Marvel Studios film has completely taken over the domestic box office. After two solid weeks in first place, the Universal and DreamWorks’ animated film The Bad Guys fell from its coveted top spot, earning $9.77 million to close out the weekend. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 came in third place with a $6.2 million total, followed by Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbeldore, which earned $3.95 million. Finally, A24’s film Everything Everywhere All At Once rounded out the top five, generating $3.3 million to end its seventh weekend in theaters.
The reception for Multiverse of Madness was pretty mixed across the board, but the uneven nature of opinions did not dissuade audiences from immersing themselves in the chaos of the adventure. The project earned a 75% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from critics while receiving an 87% audience rating. The differing experiences are pretty evident, but the enjoyment of the MCU is enough to bring audiences into theaters. It’ll be interesting to see how long the Doctor Strange sequel can maintain its hold on the box office before the next significant cinematic experience arrives.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is currently playing in theaters.
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Source: Deadline
