Eternals’ Thursday night is third best of the pandemic with $9.5 million launch

Mixed reviews be damned! Marvel’s Eternals arrived in Thursday night previews yesterday and the film opened strong, so far, with the third-best preview night of the pandemic.

Eternals took in a mighty $9.5 million on Thursday from previews that began at 6:00 PM, per “Deadline.” This represents the third-best preview showing of the pandemic following Marvel’s Black Widow ($13.2 million from showtimes that began at 5:00 PM) and Sony’s Venom: Let There Be Carnage ($11.6 million from showtimes beginning at 4:00 PM). It’s amazing what Marvel can do, even when the critical reception isn’t that strong. I know this is only the Thursday preview number and a lot can change over the weekend, but it’s a stellar start no matter how you spin it and it showcases further that moviegoing is really rebounding during the pandemic.

In terms of other Marvel releases, the Thursday number is ahead of Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings ($8.8 million) and slightly ahead of some MCU pre-pandemic Thursday numbers such as Doctor Strange ($9.4 million) and Thor: The Dark World ($7.1 million). Eternals is currently tracking for a $75 Million+ opening weekend and this preview number puts it in line with that. Interestingly enough, Doctor Strange opened over this same frame 5 years ago and opened to $75 million. Eternals is being heavily compared to that opening so it will be interesting to see if the film will match that, exceed it, or come in below it.

As per the official synopsis, “Marvel Studios’ “Eternals” welcomes an exciting new team of Super Heroes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The epic story, spanning thousands of years, features a group of immortal heroes forced out of the shadows to reunite against mankind’s oldest enemy, The Deviants. The outstanding ensemble cast includes Richard Madden as the all-powerful Ikaris, Gemma Chan as humankind-loving Sersi, Kumail Nanjiani as cosmic-powered Kingo, Lauren Ridloff as the super-fast Makkari, Brian Tyree Henry as the intelligent inventor Phastos, Salma Hayek as the wise and spiritual leader Ajak, Lia McHugh as the eternally young, old-soul Sprite, Don Lee as the powerful Gilgamesh, Barry Keoghan as aloof loner Druig, and Angelina Jolie as the fierce warrior Thena. Kit Harington plays Dane Whitman.”

What are YOUR thoughts on the Thursday preview numbers for Eternals?