Spider-Man rules the world

By John Freeman on May 8, 2007

It might have had mixed reviews (“Fun factor nil”, sniffs The Guardian), but after a record-breaking US opening, Spider-Man 3 has now demolished the international box office record with nearly £114 million at 16,700 playdates in 105 countries in six days. Variety reports that’s almost £32 million more than the foreign launch mark set by The Da Vinci Code a year ago in its first five days.

No doubt helped by a huge marketing campaign culminating in eight international pre-ems, Spider-Man 3 set records in 26 foreign markets including Brazil, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia and South Korea. Asia in particular sparked strongly to Spidey with new highs in every single territory.

Even in markets where the pic’s opening didn’t topple records, Variety reports nearly all the openings eclipsed the first two Spidey pics. In Britain it was set to be the third-biggest three-day opening with £11.45m, after Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.

Looks like we could be in for a stonking summer box office even if it is packed with sequels, including Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World’s End and Shrek The Third.

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.