Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam has powered its way to $14 million at the international box office in just two days of early previews. After months of anticipation, the DC Comics anti-hero extravaganza has finally landed in theaters.
It looks like the anticipation to see the Man in Black on the silver screen has gone global with the international box office echoing early success over Wednesday and Thursday. Among the first to see the film on Wednesday were France, where the film grossed $1M, and Korea. India also matched the numbers making it the second-biggest Warner Bros debut ever. Mexico was not far behind bringing in $850K on Thursday. Other notable openings include Australia, which saw the film surpass Shazam!'s success by 80%, pulling in $750K on its Thursday opening. The early figures show a strong start for the film given that it has today opened in other major markets, such as the United Kingdom. The same success has been mirrored on home turf with a sizeable $7.6 million secured at the domestic box office following Thursday previews.
The film marks Johnson's biggest release to date, with audiences eagerly waiting to see the wrestling champion-turned-Hollywood sensation take on the brutal anti-hero. Teth-Adam is something of a revolutionary addition to the DCEU given his brazen (and murderous) nature. It is that same no-bounds attitude towards justice that gets him put away for 5,000 years. Black Adam's violence was so prominent it almost landed the film an R rating from the Motion Picture Association - which would have isolated a large proportion of audiences. After four rounds, it was finally awarded a PG-13 rating.
Black Adam is somewhat symbolic of a new phase for the DCEU as part of the "10-year plan" which has made headlines numerous times. Johnson has been vocal about how it took 15 years to bring the film to screens. In an Instagram post shared by the star earlier this week, Johnson told of the "years of fighting" he had to go through to make it happen. "15 hard years of fighting to make this passion project a reality," he wrote. "Years of studio execs saying 'is there any other DC superheroes you want to play INSTEAD of Black Adam?' My answer was always no." The actor then went on to explain the personal impact the character had on him growing up. "When I was a little boy the one thing that drew me to Teth Adam when I saw my first Black Adam comic...he was a hero of color. That mattered to me then as it matters to me now. Kids of ALL colors around the world will now be able to see themselves in Black Adam."
The titular hero certainly believes the epic was worth the fight and time will tell if the box office agrees. Black Adam is in theaters now. Check out a trailer for the film below.