Black Widow early box office estimates are looking good, despite coronavirus concerns. The standalone Natasha Romanoff movie is something Marvel Cinematic Universe fans have been waiting years for. Captain Marvel was the first MCU project to feature a female lead and it was a massive success at the box office, so all eyes are going to be on Black Widow. Studios are starting to question upcoming release dates for some of their bigger projects because of the coronavirus, but Disney is reportedly adamant about their movies staying on target.
According to early box office estimates, Black Widow will bring in anywhere from $90 million to $130 million domestically in its opening weekend. This puts it right in the ballpark of Spider-Man: Far From Home, which made $95.5 million during its July 4th weekend debut. However, it doesn’t look good for matching Captain Marvel‘s $153.4 million. The movie doesn’t have a whole lot of competition until Fast and Furious 9 opens later in May. Plus, MCU fans have been waiting for nearly a year for a new movie.
MCU fans have been responding well to the Black Widow trailer and other promotional materials. But, it remains to be seen if going back in time will be a benefit for the movie. The storyline takes place in between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Infinity War, focusing on what Natasha Romanoff did during that time. For hardcore fans, it is definitely something they want to see. As for casual watchers, the events of Avengers: Endgame may confuse things since the character is technically dead in the current timeline.
Coronavirus concerns will also be a factor. As of this writing, new cases are popping up every day and big events are being canceled all over the world. The annual SXSW in Austin, Texas was supposed to kick off next week, but it has been canceled. Emerald City Comic-Con, which was supposed to take place this weekend, has also been canceled. Movie theaters in China and Italy are closed and Universal decided to push No Time to Die until the end of the year. As the coronavirus continues to spread, people will more than likely end up staying home and far away from places like movie theaters.
Regardless, Disney and Marvel Studios seem pretty confident that Black Widow will be able to succeed at the box office. The movie doesn’t hit theaters until May and a lot can happen between now and then. The whole thing could be gone by the time the movie opens in theaters, which would be ideal. Or, it could be a lot worse, which may find the studio questioning the release date. For now, we’ll just have to wait and see, but it looks like Black Widow will be a hit when it arrives. These initial estimates for Black Widow come to us from Box Office Pro.
