“Eternals” may be the lowest-rated film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but that didn’t stop moviegoers and ardent fans of the franchise from heading out to cinemas.
The film secured $71 million in ticket sales during its domestic debut, the fourth-highest opening of the pandemic. Disney’s Marvel now holds three of the four top pandemic opening weekends domestically.
Still, “Eternals'” haul is one of the lowest in the franchise. The last film to open to a lower tally was 2015’s “Ant-Man,” which took in $57.2 million during its domestic debut.
The film was praised for its diverse talent, but its inclusivity wasn’t enough to counter an overstuffed plot and limited character development, critics said.
Globally, the new entry in the MCU tallied $161.7 million, the second-highest global weekend posted by a Motion Picture Association film in 2021 just behind Universals’ “F9.”
“Review proof, calendar proof and always a fan favorite, the films of the MCU are undeniably among the most appealing to movie fans around the world who have for the past 13 years shown their loyalty to this incredibly popular series of films,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore.
“Eternals” opened in key markets like the United Kingdom, France, Germany, South Korea and Australia, but has yet to garner a release date in China — one of the highest-grossing international box offices.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal produced and distributed “F9.”