Shang Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings has surpassed fellow Marvel movie Black Widow and becomes the highest-grossing film of 2021 at the US box office. The superhero adventure featuring Marvel’s first leading Asian superhero, dominated the North American box office for its fourth weekend, earning $13.2 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported on Sunday.
That estimated figure, for the Friday-through-Sunday period, kept the film which stars Chinese-Canadian actor Simu Liu as a former assassin in the shadow of an evil father (Hong Kong legend Tony Leung) well ahead of its closest rival, newcomer ‘Dear Evan Hansen’. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore said, “Fans of Shang-Chi have continued to be drawn to the multiplex to see the latest Marvel extravaganza as Disney’s theatrical first strategy continues to pay big dividends for the film.
According to Box Office Mojo, these figures are enough to push it past Black Widow with a total gross of $196.45 million. Black Widow was premiered in July. It has collected roughly $183.56 million in theatres since its release. However, it has earned at least $125 million more on Disney Plus.
Shang Chi breaking this record is a notable landmark for the movie theatre business, as it was released particularly in theatres with 45 days of exclusivity as opposed to Black Widow and many other new releases, which have opted for a hybrid model. This weekend, ‘Shang-Chi’ is hovering to top the domestic box office charts for the fourth weekend straight, adding an expected $12 million to $14 million to its earnings. The film should end the weekend just aim of the $200 million mark.
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Chief analyst at Boxoffice.com, Shawn Robbins said, “The film’s run is a strong statement for how lucrative theatrical exclusivity remains to the industry’s ecosphere and a signal for what crowd-pleasing movies can do as box office recovery prepares for its next phase beginning with October’s packed slate.”
Helmed by Destin Daniel Cretton, The official synopsis of Shang-Chi reads- “Martial-arts master Shang-Chi confronts the past he thought he left behind when he’s drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization.” The movie was produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.