Box office: 'Deadpool & Wolverine' notches biggest opening ever for an R-rated movie

After a slow start to the summer for movie theaters, Marvel’s “Deadpool & Wolverine” continued the box-office bounce back this weekend, breaking the record for biggest opening for an R-rated movie domestically.

The movie brought in $205 million in its first weekend domestically at the box office, according to Comscore estimates. It cost $200 million to produce, according to Variety.

“This is a spectacular opening,” wrote David Gross in the movie industry newsletter FranchiseRe, estimating that “Deadpool & Wolverine” could rank as the fourth-biggest superhero opening of all time after final weekend figures come out. He also noted that audience and critic reviews were good.

“These characters’ popularity is growing, not slowing,” Gross wrote. “The numbers are fantastic.”

The film follows Deadpool asking Wolverine for help in saving Deadpool’s friends and his universe.

The last “Deadpool” movie, featuring the loudmouth protagonist portrayed by Ryan Reynolds, was released in 2018. “Deadpool & Wolverine” brings the character together with his Marvel counterpart, the X-Men icon played by Hugh Jackman, and is the first film to incorporate the popular mutants since Disney’s 2019 acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets.

“The two have been paired up for ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ a crossover event that’s also a sort of Viking funeral and salute to the 20th Century Fox Marvel era,” wrote Tribune News Service film critic Katie Walsh.

“Deadpool & Wolverine” also broke other box office records, with the highest July opening weekend of all time and highest opening weekend of 2024, according to Comscore.

Trailing “Deadpool & Wolverine” at the domestic box office this weekend was action movie “Twisters,” bringing in $35.3 million, and animated movie “Despicable Me 4” with $14.2 million, according to Comscore estimates.

The success of “Deadpool & Wolverine” comes at a time when a number of industry observers have voiced concerns about superhero fatigue after a string of movies, including “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” and “The Marvels,” did not produce the box office results desired.

Gross wrote in his newsletter that there are fewer superhero movies being released, with just five this year. That’s compared with 2018 and 2019, when there were seven superhero films each year.

“Over the next few years, we’ll see if Marvel and DC Comics can launch several new stories that are interesting enough to grow into series,” Gross wrote. “That’s what it will take to bring the genre all the way back.”

Times staff writer Samantha Masunaga contributed to this report.