Many film critics contend that rebooting the Spider-Man franchise was unnecessary, but audiences seem to disagree. The Amazing Spider-Man set a box-office record on July 3, as its $35 million opening-day total registered as the most profitable Tuesday opening ever, besting the previous record of $27.8 million set by Transformers in 2007. Forecasters now expect a holiday weekend total in the range of $110 million to $120 million for the film, which would be far less than the $146 million Transformers managed to grab over its first week of release, and certainly much less than the most recent superhero hit — The Avengers debuted to $200 million. Should The Amazing Spider-Man be ruled a hit... or a failure?
It's a hit: The Amazing Spider-Man is cleaning up, says Grady Smith at Entertainment Weekly. The July 4 holiday weekend "is always a lucrative one in theaters," and I bet The Amazing Spider-Man is headed for a six-day total above $150 million. "There's always a chance that the picture could crumble," but given the generally positive reviews, the movie's strategic holiday-weekend release, and the enthusiastic response it's gotten from audiences, and you've got a hit on your hands.
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