'Deadpool & Wolverine' Breaks Through Box-Offce (and Superhero) Faux-tigue

Disney’s Marvel Studios, after a series of box-office disappointments, paired up two of its biggest stars to deliver the most popular film release of 2024, as well as any R-rated film in history.

Deadpool & Wolverine tallied $211 million in domestic ticket sales in its first three days of release, ranking as the eighth-best box-office debut of all time.

Internationally, the Ryan Reynolds-Hugh Jackman feature captured $233.3 million for a global tally of $444 million.

It’s the biggest global opening since James Cameron’s epic sci-fi fantasy Avatar: The Way of Water generated $439 million in 2022, and the biggest domestic opening for Marvel since the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home garnered $260.1 million in 2021.

Deadpool &. Wolverine is the 34th film released based on characters from the so-called "Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's also the 34th consecutive MCU release to debut at No. 1 at the domestic box office. But it's the first installment to receive an R-rating since Disney assumed control of Marvel.

While the numbers would be impressive no matter when they arrived in Marvel’s timeline, Deadpool & Wolverine ’s performance is especially notable in the midst of a post-pandemic box office slump for the superhero genre, which some have even dubbed “superhero fatigue.”

Last year, The Marvels generated just $84 million through its entire global theatrical run , while Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania only gathered $214 million .

Madame Web , which was released by Sony and based on Marvel IP, generated just $100.298 million for its entire worldwide theatrical tour.

Also Read: Poor Tracking for 'Madame Web' Forecasts What Will Likely Be Marvel's Biggest Bomb Ever

Deadpool & Wolverine surpassed that total on its first day..

The film marks Reynold’s third time playing this version of comic character Deadpool (after a far less funny, cameo iteration in 2009’s X-Men: Origins ). It's Jackman’s 10th time in the role of Wolverine, starting with 2000’s X-Men .

Directed by Shawn Levy, Deadpool & Wolverine cost a reported $320 million to make and market worldwide.

While it’s likely a welcome victory for Disney, it remains to be seen whether the franchise’s success will translate to the entirety of the MCU.

Deadpool & Wolverine is largely a tonal departure for Marvel’s films, and lacks connections to the universe’s current narratives, but Disney may look to its performance when shaping future projects.

Ticket buyers gave Deadpool & Wolverine a 97% fan approval rating on RottenTomatoes , behind only Spider-Man: No Way Home, which sports a 98% audience score.

As of Deadpool & Wolverine ’s release, Disney is responsible for 16 of the top 20 highest-earning domestic opening weekends of all time, with the MCU owning 11 of the top 20.