Box Office: 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' Wows With $27.6M Thursday Night
by Pamela McClintock
Landing in North American theaters Thursday night, Disney and Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Age of Ultron pulled in $27.6 million, one of the best showings of all time.
And globally, the tentpole has already jumped the $300 million mark worldwide, thanks to a hefty early foreign tally of $287 million.
Thursday night’s domestic tally was well ahead of the $18.7 million grossed by The Avengers on is first Thursday night in May 2012 before earning a earning a record-setting $207.4 million for the weekend. Most are betting that Age of Ultron will best that number to become the top opener of all time at the domestic box office.
Early exits show that 60 percent of the audience is male, with 45 percent of all ticket buyers are under the age of 25.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 remains the record-holder for top Thursday night grosser with $43.5 million. The Dark Knight Rises, along with a trio of titles from the Twilight Saga franchise, all earned roughly $30 million on their first Thursday night, followed by Age of Ultron.
Watch our primer on what you need to know for ‘Age of Ultron:’
Last weekend, Age of Ultron opened in 55 percent of the international marketplace, grossing a dazzling $201 million and coming in 44 percent ahead of the first film.
Age of Ultron is rolling out in a raft of additional foreign markets this weekend, including Mexico, where it scored the top opening day of all time Thursday with $6.8 million. In many markets, the movie will be helped by the May Day holiday.
In North America, presales for Age of Ultron are equal to presales for all previous Marvel films combined, according to Fandango, while MovieTickets.com reports that advance sales are nearly four times greater than The Avengers.
Imax locations are already delivering big results. Thursday night’s contribution was $3 million, a record showing for Thursday night previews. The Dark Knight was the previous best with $2.3 million.
Age of Ultron, costing $250 million to make, returns Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, Chris Evans as Captain America and Scarlett Johansson as the Black Widow. The ensemble cast also includes Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle and Paul Bettany. This time, the superheroes and their allies must work together to stop Ultron (James Spader), who intends to destroy the world.
Watch Joss Whedon narrate a scene from ‘Age of Ultron:’
