Wonder Woman not as strong at foreign box office

While Wonder Woman ruled the box office at home, the movie was not as strong abroad. Was this a fluke or something much bigger?

Despite winning the summer box office in the United States, Wonder Woman didn’t earn nearly as much in the worldwide box office. The numbers say it all: Wonder Woman earned $411 million at home and just $805 million abroad. While that might not seem like a failure, consider that 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice earned $330 million domestically and $873 overseas. Wonder Woman is one of the only movies in the modern superhero movie age that didn’t double its domestic box office on the worldwide stage.

Should anyone really be surprised that Wonder Woman didn’t perform as well overseas as it did in the United States? While the numbers may seem a bit skewed, the fact is that there are some places in the world where a female superhero isn’t welcome just yet.

Just this week as the report about Wonder Woman’s surprisingly low foreign box office was released, women in Saudi Arabia were finally granted the ability to drive. Many members of the government kept women from being able to drive for fear of damaging their reproductive organs. Clearly, there is a way to go before people in some countries will see a movie about a woman saving the world then, right?

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My guess is that Justice League will perform better overseas that Wonder Woman though its domestic box office may not reach Wonder Woman’s impressive total. While Diana Prince can be accepted as part of the team, some countries are not ready for a woman in charge. But if we learned anything at all from Wonder Woman’s record smashing run at the box office it’s that the world is changing and the worldwide glass ceiling is slowly cracking. Without a doubt, Wonder Woman is an inspiration for women all over the world.