Box Office: ‘Creed 3’ Sets Franchise Record With Huge $58 Million Debut

“Creed III” emerged victorious at the box office with its impressive $58.7 million debut, setting a franchise record while dethroning two-time champ “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”

Heading into the weekend, “Creed III” was projected to earn $36 million to $40 million, which already would have been enough to establish a new high-water mark. The first “Creed,” which re-launched the decades-old “Rocky” films in 2015, powered to $29.6 million, while its 2018 sequel “Creed II” opened to $35.5 million.

But the third installment, directed by series star Michael B. Jordan in his feature filmmaking debut, got a boost from stellar reviews and strong audience scores, as well as pricer Imax tickets. The newest “Creed” enjoyed a particularly huge turnout on Friday with $22 million.

With a $75 million price tag, “Creed III” is the most expensive film in the trilogy (its predecessors cost $35 million and $50 million, respectively), but it already appears to be well positioned in its theatrical run.

“After six ‘Rockys’ and two previous ‘Creeds,’ the story continues to resonate and business is up — it’s impressive,” says David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. “Weekends like this are good news for the industry.”

In a distant second place, Marvel’s superhero adventure “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” collected roughly $12 million from 3,825 venues, marking a 61% decline. So far, the movie has generated $186 million in North America, outpacing the original “Ant-Man,” which ended its theatrical run with $180 million domestically. It’ll likely also surpass the 2018 sequel “Ant-Man and the Wasp,” which left North American theaters with $216 million.

More to come…

More to come…