‘Fantastic Beasts 3′ Hits $150 Million at International Box Office, ‘The Batman’ Surpasses $750 Million Globally

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” is now within reach of a benchmark that box office analysts were only whispering about before its release: a $200 million-plus opening. After earning a jaw-dropping $90 million on opening day, including $36 million from Thursday previews, the 28th Marvel Cinematic Universe film is now projected by industry estimates to earn a $202 million weekend launch.

Refresh for latest…: Disney/Marvel’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness began offshore release on Wednesday in 20 markets and is already doing some crazy numbers. With $27.2M through yesterday, the first-day overall results are only 4% below Spider-Man: No Way Home and a staggering 153% ahead of the original 2016 Doctor Strange, as well as 210% ahead of The Batman on a like-for-like basis at today’s rates.

Sister, the independent studio founded by Elisabeth Murdoch, Stacey Snider and Jane Featherstone, has entered into a first look deal with Wychwood Media, a new production company from Lewis Taylor and “Harry Potter” and “Fantastic Beasts” director David Yates.Under the pact, Yates and Taylor will develop and produce both scripted and unscripted film, television, and documentary content for Sister for both its U.S. and UK offices.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentItaly’s Culture Minister Enrico Franceschini has announced plans to widen the window between a movie’s theatrical release date and the time it can drop locally on a streaming platform.The move comes after producers and distributors sounded alarm bells about their struggle to get audiences back into movie theaters.Speaking to the Italian industry gathered in Rome’s presidential Quirinale Palace ahead of the David di Donatello Awards — the country’s top prizes being held on Tuesday — the minister vowed to put in place new windowing regulations that will replace the current 90-day window established in March.He did not specify how wide Italy’s new window will be. RAI Cinema chief Paolo Del Brocco and Giampaolo Letta, who heads Mediaset’s Medusa film unit, over the weekend launched a joint appeal in newspaper Corriere della Sera lamenting that Italy lags behind other top European territories in terms of post-pandemic box office recovery and urging the government to come to the rescue.The two top Italian industry execs noted that Italy is the only major European territory where box office in 2021 was was down, compared with 2020.The Italian industry has been contending with the harsh fact that the county’s box office in 2021 plunged more than 50%, compared to the average annual recent pre-pandemic intake, to €170 million ($192 million) in grosses for the year and 25 million admissions.

Refresh for latest…: On a weekend we could term “the calm before the Strange,” there was nevertheless sustained holdover business at the international box office, and a new entry in the form of Universal/Focus’ Downton Abbey: A New Era.

Refresh for latest…: Warner Bros’ Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore crossed the $200M mark at the international box office this weekend, holding the top overseas position for the third frame in a row. The offshore session added $38.3M in 67 markets for a running total of $213.2M with worldwide at $280.3M.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterUniversal’s kid-friendly caper “The Bad Guys” pulled off a heist for the ages, capturing the No. 1 spot at the domestic box office.The animated comedy has collected $24 million from 4,009 North American theaters in its debut, enough to take the crown from “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.” In its second weekend of release, the latest chapter in the “Harry Potter” prequel series plummeted to third place with $14 million, a troubling sign for the Warner Bros.’ Wizarding film franchise.“The Bad Guys” may have towered over the competition, but it was not the only newcomer to movie theater marquees.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterNicolas Cage is back… not that he went anywhere.The actor’s latest movie “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent,” a meta comedy in which he plays a fictionalized version of himself, is one of several films opening nationwide over the weekend. It’ll compete against director Robert Eggers’ Viking epic “The Northman” and Universal and DreamWorks’ animated family film “The Bad Guys,” as well as last weekend’s champion “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.”Unless ticket sales crash in week two, “The Secrets of Dumbledore,” the third chapter in the “Harry Potter” spinoff series, should retain the domestic box office crown.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is not performing like most of the entries into the Harry Potter cinematic universe.

Refresh for latest…: It’s no secret that Warner Bros’ Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore had a less than magical opening domestically this weekend, coming after early overseas rollout began last frame. Still, offshore this weekend, the threequel was again the top movie and ranked No. 1 in 52 markets, including 41 of the 44 new openers. The overseas sophomore frame added $71.7M for a cume of $150.4M, bringing global just shy of $200M at $193.4M. In like-for-likes Dumbledore is running 38% behind the previous installment and 42% off the original.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” the third chapter in the “Harry Potter” spinoff series, collected a muted $43 million in its domestic box office debut.In pandemic times, those ticket sales were enough to lead this weekend’s box office charts and land one of the biggest North American openings in 2022. But it’s also a sign that magic is in short supply for J.K. Rowling’s lucrative and ever-expanding Wizarding World.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” grossed $20.1 million on April 15, its opening night, according to IMDB’s Box Office Mojo database.Warner Bros.

J. Kim Murphy While the domestic box office is showing signs of life after an age of COVID lockdowns, it seems that not every film franchise is being buoyed by a return of theatergoers.”Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” Warner Bros.’ latest entry in its prequel series to the “Harry Potter” franchise, is off to a somewhat rocky start, projected to land a record low debut for a Wizarding World film.The third “Fantastic Beasts” earned $20.1 million on Friday and Thursday night previews from 4,753 North American locations, which marks the lowest opening day figure for a “Potter”-adjacent film.

It is looking like the “Fantastic Beasts” movies are putting Warner Bros. in a difficult position.

Warner Bros. which has traditionally ruled the Easter weekend box office is back, now a year later after Godzilla vs. Kong brought bread to reopening cinemas during the pandemic, with J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. The pic’s stateside opening, and further expansion abroad into 44 markets, arrives days after the Warner Bros. Discovery merger went public.

Jude Law (Dumbledore) and Mads Mikkelsen (Grindelwald) play former lovers in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterAn pack of intrepid wizards will duel against a tiny blue speed demon to lead domestic box office charts.The odds-on favorite “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” the third entry in the “Harry Potter” spinoff series, is expected to debut to at least $40 million from 4,200 North American theaters. Those ticket sales should be enough to surpass the competition — unless last weekend’s champion “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” powers to another strong turnout at the movies.

It is looking like the “Fantastic Beasts” movies are putting Warner Bros. in a difficult position.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore have been removed for the film’s release in China, as they allude to a gay relationship.Six seconds in the third film were cut in the forthcoming release, referring to a romantic past between Dumbledore and Grindelwald.The original cut included the lines “because I was in love with you” and “the summer Gellert and I fell in love”.The producers, Warner Bros, told Variety in a statement that they believe the “spirit of the film remains”.The studio added that they remain “committed to safeguarding the integrity of every film we release” and that that sometimes means “sensitively” making “nuanced cuts” for certain markets.“Our hope is to release our features worldwide as released by their creators but historically we have faced small edits made in local markets,” they added.“In the case of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, a six-second cut was requested and Warner Bros accepted those changes to comply with local requirements but the spirit of the film remains intact.“We want audiences everywhere in the world to see and enjoy this film, and it’s important to us that Chinese audiences have the opportunity to experience it as well, even with these minor edits.” In a three-star review of the new film, NME wrote: “Unfortunately, there are far too many other characters involved – and most of them don’t do much that actually matters.”