The Amazon warrior princess’ origin story continues to exceed expectations at the domestic and global box office.
Wonder Woman is about to enter its third week of theatrical release and is still shattering records. And it shows no hint of slowing down.
According to Forbes, Patty Jenkins’ superheroine film surpassed the $600 million mark on Wednesday night. And — currently enjoying a domestic gross of $289 million — tonight will see the film overtake Man of Steel’s domestic box office ($291 million). The $601.6 million distinction means Wonder Woman is on track to out-earn Logan, which made $617 million worldwide, and possibly the latest Pirates of the Caribbean installment, currently at $650 million.
The film is also poised to outperform Marvel’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, out July 7.
The $600 million milestone would be victory enough for a woman-led comic book film that’s been trying to get off the ground for a decade, but Wonder Woman has only been playing for 21 days. That means Diana, Princess of Themyscira will be kicking plenty of ass at the box office for the foreseeable future.
As Forbes writes,
"At this juncture, Wonder Woman is probably going to be one of the biggest-grossing comic book superhero movies ever in North America."
The blockbuster is also displaying an endurance that would make an Amazon proud. Wonder Woman‘s post-opening weekend earnings have put it in league with Logan, Deadpool, The Dark Knight Rises, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier in terms of box office longevity.
And, for any meninists that remain adamant that Chris Pine’s Steve Trevor is the movie’s main draw, Forbes also provides this little nugget:
"Wonder Woman has outgrossed, by a lot, all of Pine’s prior films in terms of domestic (Star Trek‘s $257m) and worldwide box office (Star Trek Into Darkness‘s $467m worldwide)."
Now that we officially know that Wonder Woman 2 is happening and that Jenkins will be involved, these numbers are just an added bonus at this point. The film has proven (and then some) that investing in women onscreen and off is a no-brainer. It’s also broken up the boys’ club that is the superhero film genre. And, perhaps most importantly, it’s a good movie.
That being said, I can’t help but smile whenever the new box office numbers come in. Every time the film’s bottom line increases, it gets a little easier for other female superhero projects to succeed. I’m looking forward to seeing Gina Prince-Bythewood’s Silver Sable and Black Cat, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s Captain Marvel, and Joss Whedon’s Batgirl meet the standard Wonder Woman has (and continues to) set.
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Wonder Woman is the first female superhero that comes to our minds; she is a feminist icon. So wouldn’t it be awesome if, as part of her movie’s legacy, she brings other female comic book characters into the mainstream conversation? This hasn’t happened quite yet — but $600 million means she is on the right track.