'Shazam!' sequel starring Zachary Levi, Lucy Liu has $30.5M opening weekend

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“Shazam! Fury of the Gods” opened at No. 1 in the domestic box office during its opening weekend.

The film, which is the follow-up to the 2019 movie “Shazam!”, reportedly cost over $110 million to make and $100 million to market.

But despite its recent domestic box-office success with a total of $30.5 million, the “Shazam!” sequel failed to reach Warner Bros. and DC’s estimated $35 million to $40 million start place.

The film debuted in 4,071 theaters across the country and was screened in a total of 77 territories globally, grossing $35 million in the international box office. However, its total global earnings of $65.5 million falls flat in comparison to the first film of the “Shazam!” franchise, which debuted with $53.66 million and grossed $140 million domestically and $366 million globally by the end of its box office run.

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Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice Pro, told Variety, “It’s a soft start, there’s no other way to put it. Comic book films are steadily showing that without an event-level hook, it’s difficult to live up to predecessor performances.”

“DC sequels have seen diminishing returns in recent years,” he added. “That’s compounded by the current creative shakeup, whose impact won’t be felt for a couple of years [but] makes the broader franchise feel even more fragmented to audiences for the time being.”

“Shazam! Fury of the Gods” follows Billy Batson and his fellow foster kids as they attempt to battle a trio of ancient gods using their adult superhero alter egos.

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The David F. Sandberg-directed film, which hit U.S. cinemas on Friday, stars Zachary Levi, Lucy Liu, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Rachel Zegler, Adam Brody, Ross Butler, Meagan Good, Djimon Hounsou and Helen Mirren.

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