'Wonder Woman' Charges Toward $420+ Million To Become 8th Biggest Film Of 2017

After flying past predictions with a $223 million global opening weekend, Patty Jenkins’ superhero blockbuster Wonder Woman continues its domination of the box office this weekend. The film is tracking to top $420+ million in worldwide receipts. That’s good enough for Gal Gadot’s Amazon hero to break into 2017′s top 10 box office grossers, unseating Fifty Shades Darker for the eighth spot on the list.

After several terrific weekdays that saw Wonder Woman nabbing almost $12 million on Monday, followed by an even bigger $14.4 million on Tuesday, the movie is enjoying loud positive buzz from audiences and plenty of repeat business already. It’s on pace for a finish anywhere between $250 million domestic to $310 million, depending on how well it holds and whether the final multiplier is more in the 3x range or the 2.5x range. But worldwide, it’s clear Wonder Woman is headed for a finish with more than $600 million, while $700 million is definitely still in the cards.

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Currently sitting somewhere near $320 million in global ticket sales as of this morning, if Wonder Woman sees weekend numbers of $60 million domestic and something similar overseas, then it could conceivably finish this weekend with $440+ million. The film’s international footprint grew this week as it opened in a few new markets, including Germany, and next week it expands further. So expect strong holds as the new markets plus vacation time for young audiences creates a wonderful environment for the Amazon princess to make a serious run at $500 million before the start of weekend #3.

Whether it actually manages to hit that target or winds up closer to $480+ million entering its junior weekend, the film is still in a great position and should top $520 million during that weekend. By the end of June, it’s looking at a likely top-5 spot for the year.

This is turning into a bigger victory than Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment even dreamed of, with such widespread critical acclaim the film’s marketing is smartly trumpeting its Certified Fresh rating and continuing to generate consistent social media attention and buzz. The success of Wonder Woman is heralded as a major turning point for the DCU after mixed reception and some underperformance in the past, and can go a long way toward establishing a more positive media and public narrative for their projects going forward.

After Suicide Squad pulled off a surprisingly great $745 million cume despite negative reviews and enjoyed a subsequent strong performance on home entertainment, it’s inevitable that Wonder Woman will help the DCU finish the Summer with about $3 billion in the bank overall from four theatrical receipts to date. If Justice League manages to live up to expectations and delivers a performance in the $1 billion range plus good enough reviews to push it over the 60% line at Rotten Tomatoes (whether you like it or not, that sort of indicator matters to the mainstream public and is a sign of general critical consensus about movies, so we have to consider it), then it’s definitely a new era for DC’s cinematic adaptations.

Wonder Woman will surely become a rallying point for the DCU going forward, which is wonderful to see after the unnecessary fears that preceded its release. We could wind up seeing Diana as the go-to cameo in other films, to help boost their visibility and audience interest. And I think Patty Jenkins has just become a frontrunner on the list of possible filmmakers to helm future DCU team-up pictures — a Trinity film featuring Wonder Woman, Batman, and Superman perhaps, or even a Justice League sequel if and when that project eventually gets back on the table.

I’m betting we’ll see Wonder Woman as the break-out franchise in the DCU, playing similar to the Captain America series in the MCU, but at a higher level since the public and fans are already used to the idea of shared universes. If this first film can already top $600+ million and might make it to $700 million, then a worthy sequel could climb toward the $800-900 million range, and that’s the sort of thing the studio is aiming for. So while Patty Jenkins has other projects lined up and — as I explained earlier this week — won’t be jumping into a Wonder Woman sequel immediately, you can be sure a sequel will happen and that Warner will do everything necessary to fast-track it as soon as possible.

Watch as those numbers roll in this weekend, dear readers, to see just how high Wonder Woman climbs at the box office, and meanwhile if you have thoughts about the film’s final tally, a sequel, and Wonder Woman’s status in the DCU, sound off in the comments below!

Box office figures and tallies based on data via Box Office Mojo, Rentrak, and TheNumbers.

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