Disney opens its first theatrical release in almost three months this weekend: Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness, which will look to replicate Marvel success at the UK-Ireland box office.
The fifth title in ‘Phase Four’ of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the 28th overall, Multiverse will start in 685 locations, having opened on Thursday.
That number is the widest release in the series, two ahead of Avengers: Endgame from 2019. That film took a £31.4m opening weekend, still the record in the UK and Ireland by a comfortable margin over Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ £24.2m.
Such stellar figures may be just out of Multiverse’s reach; but initial signs are positive for Disney, with the film taking $27m (£21.9m) from international territories that opened on Wednesday, reportedly just 4% behind Spider-Man: No Way Home.
That fellow MCU title, released by Sony, started with £19.5m across three days and £31.9m in total. Other strong MCU three-day openings include Avengers: Infinity War with £23.1m; and Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War, both with £14.4m.
| Film | Three-day opening weekend |
|---|---|
| Avengers: Endgame (2019) | £31.4m |
| Avengers: Infinity War (2018) | £23.1m |
| Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) | £19.5m |
| Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015) | £14.4m |
| Captain America: Civil War (2016) | £14.4m |
| Avengers Assemble (2012) | £13.3m |
| Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) | £13.1m |
| Captain Marvel (2019) | £12.8m |
| Iron Man 3 (2013) | £11.4m |
| Black Panther (2018) |
£10.5m |
Recent MCU titles have tended to start strongly, then drop off sharply after a couple of weeks. No Way Home bucked this trend; Multiverse will look to do the same and continue in cinemas into early summer.
The first Doctor Strange film had a £5.4m first weekend, as part of a £9.2m total opening. It went on to a £23.2m total – currently the 16th out of 27 MCU releases in terms of total gross.
In Multiverse, Benedict Cumberbatch’s Dr. Stephen Strange casts a forbidden spell that opens the doorway to a multi-dimensional world, including alternate versions of himself, which poses a threat to humanity.
The film is a first foray back into the superhero genre for US director Sam Raimi since his pre-MCU trio of Spider-Man films in 2002, 2004 and 2007. Those grossed £29m, £26.7m and £33.6m respectively, and are often considered to have launched the superhero box office boom of the past 15 years.
Time for a Revolution
With Multiverse eating up screens, there is a small number of other new titles.
Among them is a first distribution outing for Michael Winterbottom’s Revolution Films – the production company behind 24 Hour Party People, The Trip series and films, and Greed – with Eleven Days In May.
Narrated by Kate Winslet and co-directed by Winterbottom and Palestinian filmmaker Mohammed Sawwaf, the documentary tells the story of 11 days of bombing in the Palestinian territory of Gaza in May 2021.
Following preview screenings this week, it will start in 27 locations, including all 25 Picturehouse venues.
Blue Finch Films is debuting Thomas Daneskov’s Danish comedy Wild Men, about a man who attempts to cure a midlife crisis by fleeing to live in the Norwegian mountains, in 30 locations. Sold by Charades, the film debuted at Tribeca last summer.
Nigel Askew’s documentary Wake Up Punk, released in nine sites through Republic Film Distribution, looks at whether the punk movement has been distorted by a move into the mainstream.
Amongst other non-fiction titles, Audrey Rumsby’s vaudeville doc Barry & Joan starts in two sites this weekend with further Q&As across the coming weeks; while Tull Stories has Arica, about the survivors of a toxic waste scandal in Northern Chile caused by Swedish mining company Boliden, in six sites.
Peccadillo Pictures starts LGBTQ sports drama The Swimmer in two locations; with Miracle Comms playing Iranian romance Atabai in nine sites.
In event cinema, Trafalgar Releasing is playing Giacomo Puccini’s classic opera Turandot in 145 venues, with the majority live for the Saturday performance; while in repertory releases, Park Circus is playing the 50th anniversary re-release of Bob Fosse’s musical Cabaret in 32 sites, with a further 46 from next weekend.
Key holdovers include last week’s number one Downton Abbey: A New Era; Paramount’s Sonic The Hedgehog 2 and The Lost City; and Warner Bros’ Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.
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