Godzilla vs. Kong Opening Day Sets Box Office Record

The anticipation for the film was real and thanks to fans’ desire to get back to the cinemas and strong early reviews from critics, Warner Bros.’ MonsterVerse crossover Godzilla vs. Kong has set the record for the best opening day at the box office during the global pandemic with $9.6 million domestically, according to Deadline.

The previous record holder for the highest-grossing opening day was held by another WB blockbuster, Wonder Woman 1984, which opened on Christmas Day with $7.5 million, though the MonsterVerse crossover does have a few advantages over the Gal Gadot-led DC Extended Universe sequel, the first of which being it’s the first title to play on 3,000 theaters nationwide, whereas WW84 only opened in 2,150. Secondly is the critical reception, where WW84 didn’t do terribly and it’s marketing illustrated plenty of positive comments, it did see a far more mixed response from critics, especially in comparison to its predecessor, whereas GVK has become the highest-reviewed installment in the franchise yet, currently sitting at a 79 percent approval rating on review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes and an A on Cinemascore, where the other MonsterVerse titles scored B+’s.

With this strong start for the title coming on its opening day in the middle of the week and Easter weekend generally being considered a lucrative weekend for movies at the box office, GVK is currently projected to close the weekend at $20-30 million.

Directed by Adam Wingard (Death Note) on a script from Eric Pearson (Black Widow) and Max Borenstein (Godzilla: King of the Monsters) based on a story treatment from Zach Shields, Michael Doughtery (Krampus) and Terry Rossio (Shrek), the epic action-adventure pits two of the greatest titans in motion picture history against each other with humanity caught square in the middle. The film not only marks the second major showdown between the two, but also marks the 36th Godzilla film and 12th Kong outing, with the former having two under his belt for the MonsterVerse while the latter has only Skull Island.

The ensemble roster for the monster mashup features returning franchise stars Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things) and Kyle Chandler (First Man) as well as Alexander Skarsgård (The Stand), Rebecca Hall (The Night House), Brian Tyree Henry (Atlanta), Shun Oguri (Gintama), Eiza González (Baby Driver), Julian Dennison (Deadpool 2) and Demián Bichir (Land). King of the Monsters‘ Zhang Ziyi and franchise newcomer Jessica Henwick (Love and Monsters) were slated to appear in the film, though their roles were left on the cutting room floor.

Godzilla vs. Kong is produced by Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Eric McLeod and Brian Rogers while Kenji Okuhira, Yoshimitsu Banno, Jon Jashni and Thomas Tull as served as executive producers and Jay Ashenfelter, Jen Conroy and Tamar Kent as co-producers.

The film is produced by Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Eric McLeod and Brian Rogers, with Kenji Okuhira, Yoshimitsu Banno, Jon Jashni and Thomas Tull serving as executive producers. Jay Ashenfelter, Jen Conroy and Tamara Kent are co-producers.