The numbers are in and Marvel Studio’s “Black Widow” is officially the largest domestic box office opening since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020.
The newest superhero film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, “Black Widow” garnered a grand $215 million globally in all release formats. This includes $80 million in domestic box office, $78M in international box office, and over $60M in Disney+ Premier Access.
Largest domestic opening weekend since “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”
Only film to earn more than $100 million domestically for an opening weekend since the beginning of the pandemic
Third-highest Marvel Cinematic Universe origin story opening weekend (after “Black Panther” and “Captain Marvel”)
“Once again, Marvel has delivered an exceptional film to the delight of fans worldwide with Black Widow achieving numerous milestones in the current marketplace,” said Kareem Daniel, Chairman, Disney Media, and Entertainment Distribution. “Black Widow’s strong performance this weekend affirms our flexible distribution strategy of making franchise films available in theaters for a true cinematic experience and, as COVID concerns continue globally, providing choice to consumers who prefer to watch at home on Disney+.”
“Black Widow” is the first film in the 4th phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following the recent launches of the Disney+ original MCU series “WandaVision”, “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier”, and “Loki.”According to Disney, Marvel fans have streamed nearly 3 billion hours of content on Disney+ to date.
Disney and Marvel also recently celebrated the June 4th opening of Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure. Until the end of July, you can meet Black Widow in her white “snow suit” at Avengers Campus.
“Black Widow” is currently in theaters. It stars Scarlett Johannson, reprising her role as Natasha Romanoff, Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, David Harbour as The Red Guardian, and Rachel Weisz as Melina.
This summer, Disney+ is giving us plenty of great new original shows and films to watch on Disney+. July is going to be another bumper month, with new episodes of multiple Disney+ Originals each week and there will be a couple of big summer blockbusters hitting Disney+ Premier Access.
These Disney+ Originals will be available globally.
Here’s a look at all of the Disney+ Originals coming to Disney+ in July:
Monsters At Work
“Monsters At Work” takes place the day after the Monsters, Incorporated power plant started harvesting the laughter of children to fuel the city of Monstropolis, thanks to Mike and Sulley’s discovery that laughter generates ten times more energy than screams. It follows the story of Tylor Tuskmon, an eager young monster who graduated top of his class at Monsters University and always dreamed of becoming a Scarer, until he lands a job at Monsters, Incorporated and discovers that scaring is out and laughter is in.
Ben Feldman stars as the voice of Tylor Tuskmon in the series, which introduces new monster characters alongside returning favorites, including Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal) and James P. “Sulley” Sullivan (John Goodman). Starring alongside Feldman as part of the MIFT crew are: Henry Winkler as Fritz, the scatterbrained boss; Lucas Neff as Duncan, an opportunistic plumber; and Alanna Ubach as Cutter, the officious rule follower.
In addition to Crystal and Goodman, returning cast members from the original movies include John Ratzenberger as Yeti and Tylor’s dad, Bernard; Jennifer Tilly as Celia Mae; and Bob Peterson as Roze, twin sister to his original Monsters, Inc. character, Roz. Voicing additional characters are Stephen Stanton as Smitty and Needleman, the bumbling custodial team at Monsters, Inc., and Aisha Tyler as Tylor’s mom, Millie Tuskmon.
New episodes will be released onto Disney+ every Friday throughout July.
Turner & Hooch
When an ambitious, buttoned-up US Marshal inherits a big unruly dog, he soon realizes the dog he didn’t want may be the partner he needs. “Turner & Hooch” stars Josh Peck as Scott Turner, son of Detective Scott Turner portrayed by Tom Hanks in the 1989 film of the same name.
The series also stars Carra Patterson as Jessica Baxter, Scott’s brave, street-smart partner; Brandon Jay McLaren as Xavier Wilson, a cool, enigmatic marine-turned-US Marshal; Anthony Ruivivar as Chief James Mendez, Scott’s boss with a secret soft spot for Scott’s new dog, Hooch; Lyndsy Fonseca as Laura Turner, Scott’s sweet, animal-loving sister; Jeremy Maguire as Matthew Garland, Laura’s dog-loving son; and Vanessa Lengies as Erica Mouniere, the quirky head of the US Marshals dog training program. Five French Mastiffs also star as Hooch, Scott’s slobbery, loveable French Mastiff.
The first episode of Turner & Hooch arrives on Disney+ on Friday 16th July and new episodes will be released every Friday afterwards.
Loki
“Loki” features the God of Mischief as he steps out of his brother’s shadow in a new series that takes place after the events of “Avengers: Endgame.” Tom Hiddleston returns as the title character, joined by Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sophia Di Martino, Wunmi Mosaku and Richard E. Grant.
The last two episodes of “Loki” will be released on Disney+ on Wednesday 7th and 14th of July.
Black Widow – Premier Access
In Marvel Studios’ action-packed spy thriller “Black Widow,” Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger.
Black Widow will be available in theatres and on Disney+ Premier Access for an additional fee on July 9th.
Jungle Cruise – Premier Access
Inspired by the famous Disneyland theme park ride, Disney’s “Jungle Cruise” is an adventure-filled, rollicking thrill-ride down the Amazon with wisecracking skipper Frank Wolff and intrepid researcher Dr. Lily Houghton. Lily travels from London, England to the Amazon jungle and enlists Frank’s questionable services to guide her downriver on La Quila—his ramshackle-but-charming boat. Lily is determined to uncover an ancient tree with unparalleled healing abilities—possessing the power to change the future of medicine. Thrust on this epic quest together, the unlikely duo encounters innumerable dangers and supernatural forces, all lurking in the deceptive beauty of the lush rainforest. But as the secrets of the lost tree unfold, the stakes reach even higher for Lily and Frank and their fate—and mankind’s—hangs in the balance.
Jungle Cruise will be available in theatres and on Disney+ Premier Access for an additional fee on July 30th
Turning the Tables with Robin Roberts
Get personal with Robin Roberts and some of Hollywood’s groundbreaking women as they bear witness to their incredible journeys on their path to purpose. Each episode is a profound conversation filled with emotion and inspiration. Listen to never-before-heard stories of how these groundbreakers came face-to-face with their vulnerability, authenticity and intuition. Discover their commonalities and learn how their stories and experiences created room for expansion and evolution.
All four episodes will arrive on July 30th
The Mysterious Benedict Society
Placed undercover at a boarding school known as The Institute, a group of orphans must foil a nefarious plot with global ramifications while creating a new sort of family along the way. Based on the bestseller by Trenton Lee Stewart which Time Magazine called “one of the best young adult books of all time,”The Mysterious Benedict Society” stars Emmy® Award winner Tony Hale in the titular role and features a standout ensemble of young actors.
New episodes will be dropping onto Disney+ every Friday throughout July.
High School Musical – The Musical – The Series – Season 2
In season two of “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” the East High Wildcats, who are preparing to perform “Beauty and the Beast” as their spring musical, face off against rival school North High to win a prestigious and cutthroat student theater competition. Wigs are snatched, loyalties are tested, and ballads are belted.
New episodes will be dropping onto Disney+ every Friday throughout July.
Star Wars – The Bad Batch
“Star Wars: The Bad Batch” follows the elite and experimental clones of the Bad Batch (first introduced in “The Clone Wars”) as they find their way in a rapidly changing galaxy in the immediate aftermath of the Clone War. Members of Bad Batch—a unique squad of clones who vary genetically from their brothers in the Clone Army – each possess a singular exceptional skill that makes them extraordinarily effective soldiers and a formidable crew.
New episodes will be dropping onto Disney+ every Friday throughout July.
Following the announcement that Marvel Studios’ Black Widow will be released both in theaters and on Disney+ Premier Access on July 9th, theater owners became upset with the decision and now the Chief Executive of AMC Theatres is speaking out.
Black Widow‘s release was pushed back to July 2021 from May 2020 as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, making it one of the summer’s most anticipated movies. The latest Marvel film will also be released on Disney+ Premier Access for a one-time fee of $30 on the same day it’s released in theaters.
According to The Wall Street Journal, theater owners want to secure better terms from Disney, such as a higher share of box-office revenue or a chance to show Black Widow exclusively due to the release decision. However, the ability to fight the company might be undercut by the need to bring moviegoers back into theater seats after long closures and limited capacities.
Some theater owners were already left fuming over Disney’s decision to release Raya and the Last Dragon in theaters and on Disney+ last month, and now the Black Widow decision adds more fuel to the fire.
AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Adam Aron spoke out in regard to the Disney+ release of Black Widow, “We haven’t made any threats [but] it is widely known that AMC has threatened not to play movies if we could not find business terms that we found acceptable.”
Aron is referring to when AMC Theatres refused to show Universal films in the wake of the on-demand release of Trolls: World Tour last year, stating that “This policy is not aimed solely at Universal out of pique or to be punitive in any way, it also extends to any movie maker who unilaterally abandons current windowing practices absent good faith negotiations between us, so that they as distributor and we as exhibitor both benefit and neither are hurt from such changes.” This led to a multi-year deal between the two parties, including AMC Theatres receiving a percentage of revenues from digital releases.
These tensions highlight the changing dynamics between film studios and theaters as the COVID-19 pandemic pushed some cinema chains into bankruptcy, and as consumers and studios turned to streaming entertainment at home. Disney+ has recently reached the milestone of 100 million subscribers, and the number will keep growing as more content is added to the streaming platform.
A new trailer for Black Widow was just released by Marvel Studios to get us excited for the film’s upcoming release.
After a tumultuous year of its release getting pushed back due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Black Widow will now be released on July 9th, both in theaters and on Disney+ with Premier Access.
Bob Chapek stated recently that this hybrid release may still be possible in a recent interview. Black Widow was initially scheduled for a theatrical release on May 1, 2020. Until today, the film was scheduled for a theatrical only release on May 7, 2021, although rumors did circulate about a possible hybrid release.
Disney+ Premier Access allows subscribers to pay an extra one-time fee to gain access to a film before it premieres for all users on the streaming service.
