Avengers: Age Of Ultron Has Second-Biggest Opening Weekend Ever

Avengers: Age of Ultron isn’t going to set any box office records in its opening weekend after all, but Disney and Marvel will probably be happy with second place.

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That’s second place all time, as industry analysts are predicting Age of Ultron will finish the weekend with $187.7 million in domestic box office receipts, second only to The Avengers, which brought in $207.4 million when it opened three years ago. If the figure stands, it will bump Iron Man 3 down to third while giving Disney a clean sweep of the podium, as it were, with Marvel movies holding the top three spots.

While it’s a ton of money, it’s fair to ask whether it represents at least a little disappointment, considering forecasts were saying Age of Ultron would break the opening weekend record just a few weeks ago. Variety brought up several factors that might have held the movie back just a bit.

People don’t seem to like the sequel as much as the original

Audiences are about the same, at least going by Rotten Tomatoes’ audiences scores. The Avengers holds a 91 percent score, while Age of Ultron is sitting at 90 percent, so that’s virtually a dead heat.

With critics, it’s a different story. The first Avengers flick won their hearts to the tune of 92 percent fresh, while the new movie has managed only a good but not great 75 percent. The majority of people had their minds made up to see the movie this weekend before it was even released, but for anyone on the fence about it, softer reviews definitely could have made a difference.

There was a lot going on yesterday

Especially in the world of sports, it was a packed schedule on Saturday. Between the Kentucky Derby, the much-hyped Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao boxing match and a stellar Game 7 between the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Clippers, it was no normal May weekend. Again, the most hardcore Marvel fans no doubt found time to hit the theaters anyway, but more casual sorts had other things competing for their time.

It’s a sign of just how successful the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been that the second best opening ever could be a letdown, but some will undoubtedly characterize it that way. One very significant silver lining is how the worldwide market has changed over the past few years, especially with China coming alive. Age of Ultron will clean up overseas, and should hit $1 billion globally without even breaking a sweat.

Oh, and don’t feel too bad for Disney. It’s got another very legitimate chance of breaking the opening weekend record in December when Star Wars: The Force Awakens releases. Marvel plus Star Wars together is an almost unfair combo when it comes to getting butts in the seats, but you didn’t need me to tell you that.

(via Variety)

Next: Avengers: Age of Ultron production facts

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