'Suicide Squad' Collects $20.5M at Thursday Night Box Office
(From left) Jai Courtney as Boomerang, Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Will Smith as Deadshot, Karen Fukuhara as Katana, Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Killer Croc, and Jay Hernandez as Diablo, in ‘Suicide Squad’ (Photo: Clay Enos/Warner Bros. via AP)
By Pamela McClintock , Rebecca Ford, The Hollywood Reporter
Warner Bros.’ Suicide Squad came out swinging Thursday night in North America, earning an August-best $20.5 million in previews.
Imax locations took in a hearty $2.4 million, a 12 percent share of the total.
Related: ‘Suicide Squad’: What You Need to Know About DC’s Team of Bad Guys
The David Ayer-helmed super-villain film is tracking to open in the $130 million-$140 million range for the weekend. If so, it will grab one of the best showings of the year to date and the top August domestic opening of all time, ahead of Marvel and Disney’s likewise offbeat superhero film, Guardians of the Galaxy, which debuted to a surprise $94.3 million in 2014 after earning $11.2 million Thursday night (Guardians held the previous Thursday record.)
The big question is whether the latest film in Warner Bros.’ growing DC Extended Universe can beat another irreverent superhero offering: Fox and Marvel’s Deadpool, which collected $12.7 million in Thursday previews this past February on its way to a stunning $134.2 million domestic launch.
Suicide Squad, sporting a friendlier PG-13 rating, has been skewered by critics, however. But so was fellow DC Extended Universe title Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and that movie debuted to debuted to $166.1 million domestically in late March after collecting $27.7 million Thursday night.
Related: 'Suicide Squad’s’ Secret Drama: Rushed Production, Competing Cuts, High Anxiety
In terms of other superhero films this year, Captain America: Civil War pulled in $25 million on Thursday night, while X-Men: Apocalypse earned $8.2 million in previews on its way to a subdued $65.8 million domestic debut.
Suicide Squad is also off to an impressive start overseas, where it earned $8.1 million from its first seven markets on Wednesday.
Suicide Squad follows a group of dangerous comic book villains — played by Will Smith (Deadshot), Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn), Jai Courtney (Captain Boomerang), Jay Hernandez (El Diablo), and Cara Delevingne (Enchantress) — who are recruited to fight off a deadly threat. Jared Leto stars as The Joker while Joel Kinnaman and Viola Davis round out the cast.
Related: ‘Suicide Squad’ Cast Responds to Negative Reviews: “Critics Have Been Absolutely Horrific’
Also opening this weekend nationwide is EuropaCorp and director Barry Sonnenfeld’s Nine Lives, a family-friendly film starring Oscar-winner Kevin Spacey as a neglectful dad turned into a cat. Jennifer Garner also stars in the movie, which also has been ravaged by critics.
‘Suicide Squad’: Watch the Comic-Con trailer:
