Judging by the reaction from critics all but drooling over Deadpool and a sequel having already been announced, it’s more than safe to assume this very ripe tomato of a movie will be a huge box office success. But the Ryan Reynolds flick has already managed to break a significant record before the movie’s official release date, which is today.
From Forbes:
Deadpool got off to a blazing start last night, with a stunning $12.7 million in Thursday previews. The film began its run at 7:00 pm in its various formats and now all that’s left to do is speculate just how big the Ryan Reynolds superhero action comedy will climb over the President’s Day holiday. That’s the biggest Thursday preview audience ever for an R-rated movie, ahead of Fifty Shades of Grey and The Hangover part II. The 20th Century Fox production, which is, of course, a spin-off of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, is something of a test case in terms of selling a hard-R superhero comic book movie, something we haven’t seen that much of since Wesley Snipes’s Blade franchise came-and-went over a six-year period.
Based on movies that did bulbous Thursday night numbers in the past, Deadpool is likely well on its way to a $100 million weekend. Not to mention it just so happens to be debuting on President’s Day weekend, where everyone will be looking for shit to do, as many of us are already suffering from NFL withdrawal.
Plus, it’s going to be 140 degrees below zero on the east coast. What else is there to do? The only major hurdle will be finding the inner-strength to ditch the sweatpants and actually leave the house.
[H/T Complex]