‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ snares $185 million in domestic debut

The summer blockbuster season has started with a bang. Disney’s latest Marvel Cinematic Universe flick “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” snared $185 million domestically over its debut weekend, the highest haul of any movie released in 2022.

“Nothing says movie theaters are back more than a Marvel movie posting a monumental debut,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “This is great news for the industry, moviegoers and the slate of films set to open in the coming weeks.”

It’s estimated around 13.5 million moviegoers saw “Doctor Strange” over the weekend, the second most attended film since the pandemic started, according to data from EntTelligence. Spider-Man: No Way Home” is the current record-holder with 20.6 million patrons on its first weekend.

Internationally, the film generated $265 million in ticket sales, bringing its global total to $450 million.

While the first four months of the year saw a limited number of film releases, following “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” is a steady stream of new, hotly anticipated features.

Next on the docket is “Top Gun: Maverick” followed in quick succession by “Jurassic World: Dominion,” “Lightyear,” “Minions: The Rise of Gru” and “Thor: Love and Thunder.” All of these films will debut between now and the end of July.

“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” showcases “the global demand for big-screen events, premium formats, and shared experiences in a movie theater,” said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at Boxoffice.com. “It’s exactly the kind of launch to this summer that the entire industry was hoping for, and it perfectly sets the pace for a strong slate of films opening over the next few months.”

The average ticket price for the film was just shy of $13, according to EntTelligence, with premium format tickets going for $16.25 and 3D tickets costing $15.44.

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal is the distributor of “Jurassic World: Dominion” and “Minions: The Rise of Gru.”