‘Batman’ film tallies $15 mln in Wednesday debut
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “Batman Begins” turned in a solid $15 million of ticket sales in its Wednesday debut, but box office watchers said it was too soon to know if the film about the origins of the comic-book crime fighter can turn around Hollywood’s lackluster summer.
Box office tracker boxofficemojo.com put “Batman Begins” at No. 11 on its list of top Wednesday debuts in the United States and Canada. But the movies preceding it included titles like “Spider-Man 2” and “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.
Those titles are sequels to major hits with loyal fans. “Batman Begins,” which explores the transformation of Bruce Wayne from angry young billionaire to masked avenger, seeks to resurrect a film franchise that nearly died out after 1997’s “Batman & Robin” disappointed fans.
“It’s perhaps too early to tell whether it will be a huge hit or not, but it’s certainly a popular picture,” said Brandon Gray, president of boxofficemojo.com.
Critics have for the most part liked “Batman Begins,” and U.S. and Canadian box offices need a lift.
Although some movies like last week’s “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” and “Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith” debuted well, others like “Kingdom of Heaven” and “Cinderella Man” have failed to catch fire with audiences.
Overall ticket sales through last weekend compared to the same period in 2004 were down for the 16th consecutive week.
The movie industry is hoping that “Batman Begins,” which will be followed in coming weeks by adventures “War of the Worlds” and “Fantastic 4,” will be the start of a rebound.
“(‘Batman’) could lead to our first up weekend in a long time,” Gray said, “but an overall recovery will depend on the strength of the movies down the road.”
A spokeswoman for the Warner Bros., which released “Batman Begins,” said the studio was happy with the Wednesday debut.
Categories