Movies

Captain Marvel has landed with Marvel's fifth biggest preview opening

By

Published on March 8, 2019 12:30PM EST

Captain Marvel is already making an impression in ticket sales as the film climbs towards the top spot at this weekend’s box office.

According to Disney, the Carol Danvers origin story earned Marvel Studios its fifth biggest take from preview night screenings, with an estimated $20.7 million coming in from Thursday showings.

This from Captain Marvel, starring Oscar winner Brie Larson as the part human, part Kree superhero, surpassed preview hauls for Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 ($17 million), Spider-Man: Homecoming ($15.4 million), and Thor: Ragnarok ($14.5 million). It trails the second and third Avengers films, Black Panther, and Captain America: Civil War.

The 21st entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe sees Vers (Larson), a member of the Kree strike team Starforce, crash landing on earth in the 1990s amid a battle against the shape-shifting Skrulls. It’s there, before the events of the first Iron Man movie, that she meets young Agent Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and young Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg), while unlocking forgotten memories of her past life as a human and how she obtained her cosmic powers.

With a cast powered by Lashana Lynch, Ben Mendelsohn, Gemma Chan, Jude Law, Annette Benning, and Djimon Honsou, Captain Marvel brought in the most Fandango pre-sales since Avengers: Infinity War, per the movie ticket seller. Reviews from critics weren’t as promising, though the release remains “Fresh” with a solid rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

The film premiered earlier this week across 18 international territories — including France, Italy, and Korea — followed by 24 more. Captain Marvel is now open in all international markets except for Japan starting today and already boasts an estimated $44 million in overseas ticket sales. It’s expected to mark the second highest opening in China this weekend at a predicted $34 million.

In the U.S. and Canada, Captain Marvel, directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, is now available to watch in 4,310 theaters.

Related content: