the DC Extended Universe, sees the star reteaming with Jungle Cruise director Jaume Collet-Serra. Opening on October 21, Black Adam is the origin story of the title character, a former slave from Kahndaq who is given godlike powers before being imprisoned for 5,000 years.
When Black Adam is released in the modern era, he encounters the Justice Society of America, whose roster includes Hawkman (Aldis Hodge), Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo), and Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan). Together, they must face off against the demon Sabbac while Black Adam works out where on the hero-to-antihero spectrum he truly lies. The cast of the film also includes Sarah Shahi, Marwan Kenzari, Bodhi Sabongui, and Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone.
Per Deadline, Black Adam has dominated its opening weekend with a 3-day total of $67 million. Not only is this the first 2022 film to crack $50 million on its opening weekend since Thor: Love and Thunder in early July, this is the highest opening gross ever for a film with Johnson as the primary lead. While he has appeared in ensemble films that have had better openings, especially as part of the Fast and Furious franchise, Black Adam's opening has handily outgrossed projects like San Andreas, Skyscraper, and even Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
Can Any Dwayne Johnson Movies Break Black Adam's Record?
There are likely quite a few reasons that Black Adam has been a personal best for Johnson. One reason is that this is his first superhero film (not counting this year's DC League of Super-Pets, for which he provided the voice of Krypto), and that genre has been a huge draw for audiences over the past decade. However, Black Adam had the best opening weekend for the DCEU since Aquaman in 2018, so the genre isn't the only reason. Black Adam was potentially given an additional boost by how long it was in production since it was originally announced, building anticipation over the course of several years.
It may be hard for the star to replicate the success of Black Adam in the future. Although he has several projects in the hopper, they don't seem poised to provide super competition. His biggest possible title, the action film Red One opposite Chris Evans, will be premiering on Prime Video so it won't have any major box office receipts to pull from. This means that the most likely prospect for beating Black Adam would be its own sequel, should that be greenlit off the back of this opening weekend.
Source: Deadline
