Marvel film 'Eternals', one of the studio's most ambitious efforts to expand its superhero universe, bagged about $71 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates.
Though by most box-office standards, the opening was enviable,the film fell short of three other films have debuted better during the pandemic.
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"Black Widow" ($80.3 million), "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" ($75.3 million) and "Venom: Let There Be Carnage" ($90 million).
'Eternals' which cost about $200 million to produce, opened strongly overseas, grossing $90.7 million in 46 international territories.
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But what is more worrying for Marvel, is the mixed audience response to Chloé Zhao's 157-minute movie about an immortal race of superheroes.
'Eternals' is the first in the Marvel "cinematic universe" to rank "rotten" in Rotten Tomatoes' aggregate critic score, with only 47% of reviews considered positive.