Days after passing the critical $1 billion benchmark globally, Marvel’s Black Panther has also closed out its fourth weekend at the No. 1 spot at the domestic box office, earning $41 million in sales in North America. This makes Black Panther the first February release to hold strong for four weeks straight as it continues to inch up on The Avengers as the second-highest grossing film of all time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It proves to be another successful weekend for parent company Disney as the Ava DuVernay-directed A Wrinkle in Time finished up its opening weekend at No. 2 in the box office, earning $33 million. The film has also made history in the name of diversity, becoming the first film with $100 million budget to be directed by a black woman. Ahead of this weekend, Black Panther director Ryan Coogler published an open letter to DuVernay, referring to her as “someone who makes the impossible look easy.”
“It's why I feel privileged to call her my big sister,” he would go on to add.
While A Wrinkle in Time did not quite live up to the expectations held out about it finally dethroning Black Panther this weekend, nothing lasts forever, and BP may soon find itself removed from that top spot in the coming weeks, making room for the forthcoming Avengers: Infinity War which is set to make its debut next month. Even then, some hold out that the new film won’t quite match the majesty of Wakanda's tale.
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