Never underestimate your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, even with a mutating virus afoot.<\/b>
\nNever underestimate your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, even with a mutating virus afoot. Despite rising concerns over the omicron coronavirus variant, \u201cSpider-Man: No Way Home\u201d not only shattered pandemic-era box office records; it became the third best opening of all time behind \u201cAvengers: Endgame\u201d ($357.1 million) and \u201cAvengers: Infinity War\u201d ($257.7 million). The Sony and Marvel blockbuster grossed a stunning $253 million in ticket sales from 4,325 North American locations, according to studio estimates on Sunday, also setting a record for the month of December. The web-slinger\u2019s success couldn\u2019t have come sooner for a movie business that has had a rollercoaster 2021 and could be headed for a difficult start to 2022 as the omicron variant of the coronavirus forces more and more event cancellations. \u201cThis weekend\u2019s historic \u2018Spider-Man: No Way Home\u2019 results, from all over the world and in the face of many challenges, reaffirm the unmatched cultural impact that exclusive theatrical films can have when they are made and marketed with vision and resolve,\u201d said Tom Rothman, Sony Pictures chairman and CEO. \u201cAll of us at Sony Pictures are deeply grateful to the fabulous talent, both in front of and behind the camera, that produced such a landmark film.\u201d In its five days playing in theaters internationally, it amassed $334.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its global total to $587.2 million against a $200 million production budget. The film has yet to open in markets like Thailand and Japan, and there is no release date set for China. As the third standalone Spider-Man film in the Tom Holland era, \u201cNo Way Home\u201d was always going to be an \u201cevent film\u201d for fans. After several delays over the year Sony planted its launch in the pre-Christmas frame and as of late last week had anticipated a pandemic-best opening in the $130 to $150 million range. But it quickly became clear that \u201cSpider-Man\u201d was going to fly much higher. The film netted an incredible $121.5 million in its first day \u2014 bumping \u201cStar Wars: The Force Awakens\u201d out of the No.2 position. Directed by Jon Watts, \u201cNo Way Home\u201d picks up with Holland\u2019s Peter Parker grappling with the world finding out about his superhero identity, and features Zendaya, Marisa Tomei and Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange. \u201cFor the target audience, this is absolute must-see, required viewing,\u201d said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. \u201cThere is no way fans were going to opt out because of omicron.\u201d Many moviegoers also shelled out top dollar to see the film on the biggest screens possible. According to IMAX, an estimated $36.2 million of the global total is from their large format screens. \u201c\u2018Spider-Man: No Way Home\u2019 is an exclamation point on the comeback we\u2019ve seen at the box office in 2021,\u201d said Rich Gelfond, CEO of IMAX. \u201cWith these historic results, IMAX continues to see blockbuster releases generate box office at or exceeding pre-pandemic levels.\u201d And it\u2019s not just fans who have been giving the film good marks: Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive as well. It has a 94% \u201cfresh\u201d rating on Rotten Tomatoes.<\/p>\n