Black Widow global box office sets COVID milestone with $200M

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Nothing draws an audience like a Marvel movie, even during an ongoing pandemic. Disney's Black Widow has officially surpassed an impressive box office milestone, earning $200 million worldwide.

In the past, many Marvel movies could be found saying "on your left" to the $200M benchmark during opening weekend. That being said, Black Widow is the first Marvel movie made to contend with mass theater closures, limited capacity seating, and other byproducts of the pandemic. Currently, 20% of theaters are still shuttered in the U.S. and locations in foreign territories. However, that hasn't stopped Marvel fans from masking up and heading to theaters for Natasha Romanoff's long-overdue solo adventure. In fact, fans are so eager for Marvel's brand of superhero antics that Black Widow reached the $200M milestone in just five days. The previous record was held by Universal's F9: The Fast Saga, which sped past $200M in just eight days.

Analysts expect Black Widow to win the box office again this coming weekend, beating new releases like Space Jam: A New Legacy and Escape Room: Tournament of Champions. If estimates hold, Black Widow could add another $30 million to Yelena Belova's pocket-happy vest.

Directed by Cate Shortland (Lore, Berlin Syndrome), Black Widow takes us to the time when 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.

The long-overdue female-fronted solo feature stars Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, David Harbour as Alexei/Red Guardian, and Rachel Weisz as Melina. The film also features a new spin on the classic Marvel villain Taskmaster as an unstoppable and adaptable force of nature.

Black Widow is in theaters now and available to rent on Disney+ via Premium Access.