Robert Pattinson-starrer ‘The Batman’ finally hit movie theatres this weekend. In India, the film started off with a decent box office collection as it opened to Rs 6 crore on Friday. However, the Mat Reeves directorial set a new record by grossing a whopping USD 57 million (Rs 435.62 crores) from 4,417 locations in the US on its opening day. It also includes USD 21.6 million (Rs 165 crores) from Thursday’s preview screenings.
The DC adaptation is tracking to open somewhere between USD 120 million and USD 130 million (Rs 993 crores) for the weekend. With more than USD 50 million already in the bank, ‘The Batman’ is already the biggest opening weekend of 2022, with Uncharted standing at a distant second with a USD 44 million three-day debut.
It’s yet another demonstration that superhero appointment viewing is in a league of its own for moviegoers, reports variety.com.
Compared to the franchise’s recent history, that figure would fall short of the opening weekend totals for Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Dark Knight’ (USD 158 million) and ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ (USD 160 million), as well as that of Zack Snyder’s crossover showdown ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ (USD 166 million).
However, ‘The Batman’ is not a sequel like those films; instead, it’s a whole cloth reboot of the property, with a new cast, a new mood, and a new story. Nolan’s reboot, ‘Batman Begins’, opened to USD 48 million in 2005 — a number that ‘The Batman’ is more than doubling.
Meanwhile, in India, the film is facing tough competition from Alia Bhatt-starrer Gangubai Kathiawadi, which has crossed the Rs 100-crore mark at the box office. On Saturday, the Robert Pattinson-led collected 8.25 crores, which is a good jump over Friday collections of Rs 6 crores. Its current total stands at Rs 15 crores, according to Koimoi.com.
However, Warner Bros. hopes the DC adaptation will have longer staying power thanks to its positive reception. ‘The Batman’ sees Robert Pattinson as the seventh actor to don the cowl of the Caped Crusader in a live-action movie. The film also stars Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as the Riddler, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, and Colin Farrell as the Penguin.
Directed by Matt Reeves, the production proved to be a prolonged one due to the Covid pandemic, with a production budget ballooning past USD 200 million.
(With IANS inputs)
