At this point, much has been made of the fact thatAvengers: Endgameabsolutely obliterated the box office over the weekend. But it turns out it was an even better weekend for Marvel than some may realize. Not only because they’re already rolling in the dough after their latest movie has been in theaters for less than a week, but becauseCaptain Marvel, their previous release, received a nice little boost at the box office, largely thanks toAvengers: Endgame.
Captain Marvel, in its eighth weekend of release, finished number two at the box office with $8.3 million. That pales in comparison to the blistering $356 million thatAvengers: Endgamenabbed over the weekend domestically, on its way to $1.22 billion worldwide, thanks to an incredibly strong showing overseas. Still, it means Marvel Studios, and ultimately Disney, controlled the two top movies in theaters this weekend.Captain Marveldid actually make slightly less this week than it did last week when it brought in $9.1 million. Though it does seem, in both cases, that the boost had to do with fans getting ready for the follow-up toInfinity War.
In any event, it’s incredibly rare for a movie to be that high on thebox officecharts this deep into its release. But it speaks volumes about the brand that Marvel has managed to build. It also probably doesn’t hurt that certain fans who were a little late to the game probably used this first busy weekend as an excuse to seeCaptain Marvelwhile waiting to seeAvengers: Endgameonce the rush dies down, at least a little bit.
It’s an excellent time, in this case, to beOscar-winner Brie Larson. This means she has starred in two movies already in 2019 that have grossed more than $1 billion at the box office.Captain Marvelnow sits at $1.1 billion worldwide. When all is said and done, it’s all but assured thatAvengers: Endgamewill pass the $2 billion mark, if notAvatarto become the highest-grossing movie ever. Both of the movies in which Larson’s character Carol Danvers appears have been received very well by critics and, not for nothing, but her directorial debutUnicorn Storealso recently debuted on Netflix. Everything’s coming up Larson this year.
Brie Larson was initially announced asCaptain Marvelduring Marvel’sSan Diego Comic-Conpresentation in 2016. So this victory lap has been a long time coming. That said, it would have been very difficult to predict just how well things were going to go for this character in the MCU at that particular time. AsAvengers: Endgameessentially serves as the conclusion of the 22-movie arc that got us there, it would seem that Marvel has at least one big, bright star to help lead them into the future, wherever that may be. Captain Marvel 2 hasn’t yet been announced, though that seems like a guarantee at this point. These numbers were provided by Box Office Mojo.
