The hotly anticipated Marvel film “ Black Panther” is expected to rake it in when it finally hits theaters this weekend.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, research firm NRG now estimates the film will bring in $165 million or more for the upcoming four-day Presidents Day weekend.
The first projections, from two weeks ago, forecasted that the film’s domestic opening would be $125 million. The number skyrocketed to $150 million-plus last week and has continued to grow.
If NRG’s prediction is correct, “Black Panther” would be among the top five or six domestic openings ever for a superhero film. It could also be the top February launch of all time, per THR.
“Deadpool” set the Presidents Day weekend record in 2016 with a $152 million opening, followed by 2015′s “Fifty Shades of Grey” ($93 million).
Even if “Black Panther” doesn’t hit its high predictions, the film has already set a slew of records.
For one, online ticketing service Fandango reported that presales for the film “outpaced advance sales for all other first-quarter releases in the company’s 18-year history.” Additionally, more than five million tweets have been posted about this particular film ― making it the most-tweeted-about movie in the world this year.
“Black Panther” currently has a 97 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, the best rating of all titles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe ― though it is worth noting it once held a 100 percent rating just a week ago.
For those who are late to the party and don’t know what “Black Panther” is about, it follows the story of T’Challa after his father T’Chaka is killed. He takes over as the king of the African tech-nation Wakanda where has to protect his people from harm as both king and, you guessed it, Black Panther.
Directed by Ryan Coogler, “Black Panther” stars Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong’o Michael B. Jordan, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker and Andy Serkis. It hits theaters in the United States on Feb. 16.
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