Could Aquaman end up making more money than we thought?

Between a strong debut in China and plenty of positive buzz, Aquaman could end up being stronger at the box office than first expected.

It’s a good week to be Jason Momoa, and it’s only Sunday. After getting to host Saturday Night Live for the first time last night, The Hollywood Reporter is now saying that Aquaman is casually making all kinds of money in China, to the tune of $93.6 million so far.

Sure, that’s not quite as much as we’d expect for a giant opening weekend in the United States, but as THR notes, that’s actually fantastic. However, what does this mean for Aquaman globally? Well, there are a couple things to possibly divine from this.

First, it’s another positive note for the movie, and that’s nothing to shake a stick (or a trident, for that matter) at as the U.S. release date approaches. If you’ll recall, Aquaman has been steadily building its reputation on Twitter ahead of reviews becoming public. The more it gets hyped up and acknowledged, the likelier it is that even the more reluctant filmgoers online might give this one a chance. More chances mean more ticket sales.

But beyond that, this is the kind of win that DC Entertainment probably needs at this point. Things still seem to be a bit of a jumble over there, with this past week bringing news of Plastic Man now moving into development. If you can name all the movies that DC is supposedly working on this point that have been reported, you deserve a prize of some sort, because it’s wild. However, box office news like this cuts through easily.

Now, what does this mean for the domestic box office? Well, Box Office Pro did just raise its estimates on Friday, Dec. 7; presumably it’ll get another nice bump from the news from China. Aquaman, like plenty of other movies, has something like an even longer weekend, because of when Christmas falls. That means that it gets the usual Friday-Saturday-Sunday, then Monday, Tuesday, and even Wednesday as holidays. THR even calls this period “lucrative,” though doesn’t give out a new estimate for what Aquaman could draw up from the depths.

Even if it doesn’t make Justice League-type money in its first three days, Aquaman seems to have more goodwill — and possibly more staying power — than that film ever did.