At the time of writing, filmgoers in China are still in the midst of their first Avengers: Endgame screenings. But even before the movie first hit theaters in the Middle Kingdom, the Avengers: Infinity War sequel was already breaking commercial records.
Earlier this month, it was reported that the flick managed to sell more than 1 million advance tickets in a record-breaking six hours, and it seems that the film has continued to enjoy phenomenal pre-sales ever since. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Endgame reached a whopping $90 million in advance ticket sales, beating the all-time record previously held by Monster Hunt 2, which managed just under $60 million last year.
What’s more, the film is estimated to have earned more than $20 million in midnight previews alone, more than doubling the $9.1 million record set by The Fate of the Furious in 2017. From here, it’s projected that the feature could earn as much as $270 million during its five-day China opening.
After that, it’s to Endgame’s benefit that the movie’s second weekend overlaps with China’s Labor Day, which grants students and workers time off from May 1st to the 4th. In its entire theatrical run, the flick even has a good chance of being the first Hollywood feature to gross more than RMB 3 billion (just under $450 million), which would comfortably beat the $397 million record set by The Fate of the Furious for highest-grossing US film in the China market.
Meanwhile, over in North America, Avengers: Endgame is projected for an opening weekend gross upwards of $270 million, and may even hit the $300 million mark. Not too shabby, but we’ll see if the film can match these expectations when it arrives in theaters on April 26th.