By Josh Reilly
The Batman released earlier this month to rave reception from fans and critics alike, with the general consensus seeming to be that it ranks as one of the best Bat-films to date, with some saying it’s superior to the rest, even Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight. With that praise came an excellent opening at the box office, both domestically and abroad. The film has already crossed the $400 million mark at the worldwide box office, and had the second best opening for a movie since the pandemic began, behind only Spider-Man: No Way Home.
The Batman recently secured a China release, something that is not always a guarantee these days, as demonstrated by other superhero films like Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Eternals. However, the film is now being projected to come in under initial expectations, albeit to no fault of its own.
Per THR, the growing concerns over the spread of COVID-19 in China has meant that the government is putting restriction measures back in place, resulting in the closure of roughly 30% of movie theaters in the country. The rise in cases is already said to be the highest increase since the pandemic began in Wuhan back in March 2020, meaning that the Chinese authorities are scrambling to contain the virus. The uncertainty means that The Batman might see a much lower opening than initially anticipated.
THR cite Warner Bros. insiders who claim that the film is set to have a $15-$20 million opening, down from the previous forecast of $25-30 million from just a few days ago. Other films are also struggling in China because of COVID at the moment, especially foreign projects like The Batman and Tom Holland’s Uncharted.
The Batman is in theaters now.