Box Office: Ryan Reynolds' 'Deadpool' Opens to Record $12.7M Thursday Night

Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool is off to a racy start at the North American box office, grossing $12.7 million Thursday night to score the biggest preview number ever for an R-rated film and the biggest of all time for the month of February.

Deadpool — among only a few Marvel superhero movies to be rated R after Blade and The Punisher — will easily rule the long Valentine's Day and Presidents Day weekend with a four-day gross of $65 million or more. Some box-office analysts believe it will sail past $70 million, one of the top debuts ever for an R-rated title, but Fox is being more conservative in suggesting $60 million to $65 million. Fox made the movie per its licensing deal with Marvel Enterprises.

The previous top Thursday night opening for an R-rated film belonged to The Hangover Part II ($10.4 million), which launched over Memorial Day weekend in 2011, followed by Fifty Shades of Grey ($8.6 million) a year ago on its way to scoring the top Presidents Day weekend debut of all time with $93 million. Deadpool even beat Disney and Marvel Studios' Captain America: The Winter Soldier ($10.2 million) and Guardians of the Galaxy ($11.2 million).

Deadpool began playing at 7 p.m. in 2,975 locations; on Friday, it will expand into a total of 3,558 runs, including Imax locations. The Imax portion of Thursday night's haul was $2.3 million, the sixth biggest preview ever for the large-format circuit.

A passion project for Reynolds, the irreverent, tongue-in-cheek movie follows Wade Wilson (aka Deadpool), a foul-mouthed, witty superhero who is bestowed with special powers after going through an experimental treatment for cancer. The actor first appeared as the character in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In Deadpool, the superhero searches out the men who subjected him to the treatment.

Deadpool's rating is considered a "hard" R, and theaters across the country will likely be monitoring ticket buyers to make sure those under 17 years of age unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian don't gain entry to Deadpool, since teenagers are in the habit of seeing Marvel superhero movies on their own.

The movie is also off to an impressive start overseas, where it could earn north of $80 million for the weekend. It's a key victory for Reynolds, whose previous superhero film, Green Lantern, fell flat. Deadpool cost $58 million to make, and it took 11 years to convince Fox to make the film, considering its R rating. Directed by Tim Miller, the film also stars Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J. Miller and Gina Cara.

The other two holiday offerings are Zoolander 2 and How to Be Single.

From Paramount, Zoolander 2, reuniting Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson and Will Ferrell, is expected to open in the $25 million to $28 million range for the four days after earning $750,000 Thursday night. The sequel, costing a little more than $50 million to make, is rated PG-13.

How to Be Single, an R-rated romantic comedy, stars Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Alison Brie and Leslie Mann. The New Line and Warner Bros. film is packing to open to $21 million thanks to keen interest from females. It's also rolling out in select foreign markets, and is already seeing good returns.
The movie took in $700,000 Thursday night.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Planning to see this in IMAX tomorrow with a few friends. Hopefully!

@chinski what are your thoughts on the movie? I saw it last night and loved it. I'm planning on paying to see it again next week.

@Christ Respawns I just got back from seeing it. I thought it was hilarious, plain and simple. Good action movie, but also 100% my type of comedy so I thoroughly enjoyed it. I saw it in IMAX too...

I don't think I'd see it again so soon, though. I want to see Bad Grandpa and Hail, Caesar!