‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ fuels an already-hot summer box office, opens at $96 million
CNN
One of the year’s most hotly-anticipated movies, “Deadpool & Wolverine” is so far delivering on its promised hype
One of the year’s most hotly anticipated movies, “Deadpool & Wolverine,” is so far delivering on its promised hype with $96 million in domestic sales in its opening night, according to Comscore data. The summer blockbuster is on track to exceed $200 million domestically for the weekend, say industry analysts. It would be a record-breaking feat for the franchise. “It is a major industry benchmark for an R-rated movie to open (at) $200 million, literally unheard of until this title,” said Daniel Loria, editorial director at Box Office Pro. The first Deadpool movie set the record for the highest grossing opening weekend when it was released in 2016 with roughly $132 million, and “Deadpool 2” cinched the second-place spot with $125 million in domestic sales in 2018. But even adjusted for inflation, both films pale in comparison with the third installation’s anticipated $200 to $220 million, according to Loria. An opening weekend of this magnitude would cement “Deadpool & Wolverine” alongside some of Marvel’s highest-grossing flagship films, including 2012’s “The Avengers” ($207 million) and 2018’s “Black Panther” ($202 million). “This would rank among the top 10 openings of all-time and marks the sixth-highest Friday ever reported at the box office,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “This also marks the highest opening weekend for Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman and (director) Shawn Levy.”
Nippon Steel is expected to re-file its application for a national security review by American regulators of its $15 billion takeover bid of US Steel, sources familiar with the matter told CNN on Tuesday, buying Japan’s largest steelmaker an additional 90 days to close its acquisition of an American rival after political opposition emerged in an election year.
So far, the attacks that targeted Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah members through their pagers have had devastating consequences. At least nine people, including an eight-year-old girl, were killed, and at least 2,800 were wounded. Over 150 of those injured are in critical condition, according to the Lebanese health minister.