'Doctor Strange' and his sorcery win box office: Here's what led to success
'Strange,' the newest Marvel superhero film, came in first place at the box office in its debut weekend. The animated movie 'Trolls' and director Mel Gibson's war film, 'Hacksaw Ridge,' also did well financially.
'Doctor Strange' stars Benedict Cumberbatch.
Disney/Marvel/AP
Marvel鈥檚 newest superhero, Doctor Strange, worked his magic at the weekend box office, with the movie of the same name coming in at No. 1 in its debut weekend.
鈥淒octor Strange鈥� stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange, a skilled surgeon who is left searching for answers after his hands are injured in a car accident. After traveling to Nepal, he learns magical skills that help him in a fight against evil.
The film co-stars Tilda Swinton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, and Mads Mikkelsen.
鈥淪trange鈥� debuted with $85 million this past weekend. Behind it was the new animated movie 鈥淭rolls,鈥� which was released by Dreamworks, also the home of such past animated films as the 鈥淗ow to Train Your Dragon鈥� series and the 鈥淜ung Fu Panda鈥� movies. 鈥淭rolls鈥� brought in more than $45 million for second place.
Meanwhile, the new war film 鈥淗acksaw Ridge,鈥� which is directed by Mel Gibson and stars Andrew Garfield, placed third, grossing nearly $15 million in its debut weekend. The film 鈥淭yler Perry鈥檚 Boo! A Madea Halloween,鈥� which was released on Oct. 21, placed fourth, bringing in nearly $8 million this past weekend, while the Dan Brown adaptation 鈥淚nferno,鈥� which originally opened on Oct. 28, placed fifth, taking in more than $6 million.
What led 鈥淪trange鈥� to such success? Part of it is, of course, the Marvel brand. This was the 14th film released by the ultra-successful superhero studio, and the studio's films have become one of the most financially successful franchises of all time. Moviegoers know what they鈥檙e getting with the films.
And like many Marvel movies, 鈥淪trange鈥� had a mostly positive reception from critics. noted that 鈥淪trange鈥� 鈥渂oast[ed] glowing reviews.鈥澛�
also credited Mr. Cumberbatch with bringing in moviegoers.
鈥淗e's ... reached the point where that fandom is actually translating into ticket sales,鈥� Mr. Susman writes of admiration for the actor. 鈥淭wo years ago, he managed to turn 鈥楾he Imitation Game鈥� ... into a $91 million domestic hit. As much as the Marvel name alone sells tickets, it certainly helped that it was the cerebral and charismatic Cumberbatch playing the mysterious and obscure character.鈥�