Godzilla vs. Kong continues to shatter pandemic-era box office records with an impressive opening weekend in theaters, this time domestically. After exceeding expectations overseas, our favorite monsters premiered in the U.S. to support movie theaters all over the country, which are still recovering from the pandemic and dealing with a reduced public.
Godzilla vs. Kong snatched a new record with $32 million only in the U.S. in the three days of the weekend, a new high for these COVID-era circumstances. If we take into account that the film first hit theaters in the U.S. last Wednesday, March 31, the movie earned $48.5 million for the five-day period, signifying yet another record. These numbers are not exactly unexpected, since Godzilla vs. Kong already had the biggest opening day during the pandemic. Still, it’s good to know movie theaters are slowly recovering, as we all hope to be back soon to some kind of normalcy in getting to watch future releases on the big screen. In total, the Adam Wingard-directed monster smash has earned a combined estimate of $285.4 million worldwide through Sunday.
More than half of all movie theaters in the U.S. have already reopened, giving Godzilla vs. Kong the chance to also grab the record for the largest number of locations screening the same movie since the pandemic started. Nevertheless, in several states, theaters are operating with reduced capacity in order to follow pandemic protocols, without which the box office numbers could be even higher. This includes New York and Los Angeles, two of the biggest movie markets in the U.S. To make Godzilla vs. Kong’s new records even more impressive, the movie is also available on HBO Max for no extra cost besides the streaming service’s usual subscription until May 1.
The success of Godzilla vs. Kong means that the worst of the pandemic may be behind us, at least in terms of the future of the movie theater industry. It also signals that studios that are also releasing their movies on streaming don’t necessarily hurt their box office numbers. Moreover, there’s something special in watching a movie in theaters, even if it's already available from the safety of our homes.
Godzilla vs. Kong is now available in theaters and on HBO Max.