Vin Diesel’s ‘F9’ shatters pandemic records by making $70 million debut

Vin Diesel starrer ‘F9’, the latest entry in the universe of ‘Fast & Furious’, has shattered all pandemic box releases by making $70 million from 4,179 North American venues. The movie made $70 million, which the biggest start for a movie at the US box office since the pandemic struck the nation.

Before ‘F9’, ‘A Quiet Place Part II’ had the biggest pandemic-era opening at the US Box office as it made $48.3 million in inaugural ticket sales on the first weekend. The other top openers amid the pandemic were ‘Cruella’ and ‘Godzilla vs. Kong’, both of which made $37.4 million and $32.2 million respectively during its first weekend after release.

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‘F9’ has now made over $405 million worldwide since its release  after an additional $37.9 million in ticket sales internationally.

The inaugural weekend of ‘F9’ is “an excellent opening in an extraordinary series,” David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research said, Reuters reported.

A senior media analyst at Comscore, Paul Dergarabedian said, “F9′s opening weekend performance shows that Universal’s decision early on in the pandemic to move the film well into 2021 was the absolute best move.”

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‘F9’ release came at a time when the nations have started opening up and easing COVID-related restrictions, as more theatres are also opening for the public. According to Comscore’s data, this weekend nearly 80% of theatres in North America were open.