‘Wonder Woman’ Holding in Theaters Better Than Any Superhero Since ‘Spider-Man’
There’s a certain amount of irony to Spider-Man: Homecoming displacing Wonder Woman as the top-grossing superhero movie on the current box-office chart. As it turns out, Wonder Woman’s continuing success in theaters means that it has achieved something that no movie since the original Spider-Man has accomplished: A total domestic gross that is nearly four times its opening weekend numbers.
Here is an explanation of exactly what’s going on, from The Hollywood Reporter:
That also means Wonder Woman will earn roughly 3.8 times the $103.3 million it collected when it launched over the June 2-4 weekend — the best multiple for the genre in decades. Currently, the film’s multiple is 3.6, slightly ahead of the first Spider-Man in 2002. The first Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) was also a word-of-mouth sensation, sporting a 3.5 multiple, while Nolan’s sequel, The Dark Knight (2008), powered to a 3.4 multiple.
In other words, while several other superheroes have made more in U.S. theaters (nine, to be exact), none since that first Spidey has had better staying power at multiplexes. People are still going to see Wonder Woman, or they’re going back to see it again and again.
THR notes that a multiplier of 2.5-3 is considered good for superhero movies (which tend to make most of their money in massive opening weekends) and quotes one box-office expert who says that Wonder Woman’s female empowerment message makes it “a very unique property this summer.” So that’s another irony. The very thing that kept Wonder Woman out of theaters for so long is the exact same thing that is keeping it in theaters for so long, even in a marketplace swamped with superheroes. (The fact that the other DC Extended Universe movies so far have been a very mixed bag might have also artificially depressed WW’s opening weekend, helping boost its multiplier as the great word-of-mouth started to spread.)
If you haven’t seen Wonder Woman on the big screen yet, this is good news. Thanks to these numbers, you still have plenty of time.