Moviegoers’ Spidey-senses were tingling this weekend as audiences swung into theaters for the highly anticipated animated film “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” giving the movie a hefty $120.5 million in its domestic box office debut. That’s a massive 241% jump from its predecessor, 2018’s “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” which debuted at $35.6 million. The second film in the series follows Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and his journey across the Multiverse with a group of interdimensional Spider-People charged with preserving its existence.
Across the Spider-Verse, it also flexed its box office muscles overseas, pulling in an additional $88.1 million from 57 markets for a worldwide bow of $208 million. With little competition on the horizon (the new Transformers flick “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” and 2024’s live-action sequel to The Flash are set to debut next week), it looks like Across the Spider-Verse will quickly hold onto its No. 1 spot for another week, if not longer.
In addition to a big-money debut, the movie has earned critical acclaim and strong audience reactions. It boasts an A CinemaScore and an 82% definite recommendation from audiences, according to Comscore PostTrak exit polling.
It’s no wonder that it is far outpacing Disney and Marvel Studios’ recent blockbusters, including Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ($49.2 million over Easter weekend) and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantum Realm ($42.7 million this past weekend). It is the highest-grossing domestic opening for an animated film since a decade ago when another acclaimed superhero flick, “The Incredibles 2,” opened with $148 million.
Not only is Across the Spider-Verse Sony Pictures Animation’s biggest domestic launch, but it’s also one of its best-performing animated films overall and the studio’s fifth-biggest opening weekend ever. The animated feature also became the second-biggest opener of 2023 in North America, behind only? The Super Mario Bros, film garnered a whopping $146 million.
Across the Spider-Verse continues the inventive incorporation of the Multiverse into the Spider-Man story, and a 15-minute clip shown at CinemaCon 2023 gave fans even more information on how it all works. For example, it’s revealed that Gwen Stacy has been separated from Miles Morales for more than a year and that she’s now part of a group of Spider-People who are trying to prevent the Multiverse from collapsing.
The saga will end with 2024’s “Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.” It’s directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K Thompson, written by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (22 Jump Street) and Dave Callahan, and produced by Amy Pascal (The Angry Birds Movie 2), Avi Arad, and Christina Steinberg. It needs to be clarified whether that sequel will connect with the MCU or Sony’s live-action universe. It all depends on when that final installment will be released and the direction the creative team decides to take it.
