AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR RACES TO ~1 BILLION
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Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Infinity War was touted to be Hollywood’s biggest release of the year and in India, it has started off its campaign in line with the expectations. At ~943 million over the first weekend (Friday through Sunday) since its release on April 27, the movie has become the second biggest opener of the year (both Bollywood and Hollywood) in India.
Avengers: Infinity War is second only to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat, which raked in ~1.14 billion (1140 million) over the first weekend of its release. Infinity War was released in 2,000 screens, among the highest for a Hollywood release in the country. It set the cash registers ringing with ~313 million on its opening day, followed by ~ 305 million on Saturday and ~325 million on Sunday.
This makes it the biggest Hollywood opener ever, even ahead of Disney’s The Jungle Book (2016), which collected ~402 million in its first weekend. The Jungle Book went on to make ~1.88 billion at the Indian box office, and became the most successful Hollywood film. “The opening weekend numbers are a testament to Avengers: Infinity War creating a cinematic milestone. The success shows the ever increasing fan base and the pop culture phenomena that Marvel as a brand enjoys in India,” says Bikram Duggal, head of studio entertainment, Disney India.
With this, Marvel continues its winning streak at the Indian box office, following up on the success of films such as Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and Black Panther (2018).
Analysts believe the film’s longevity at the box office will determine if it will sustain momentum to beat The Jungle book’s record in terms of lifetime collections. The film had a steady run at the halls for over six weeks, which helped it cash in on the nostalgia surrounding the story, the localisation efforts by the studio and the summer vacation footfalls in the malls and multiplexes.
With April 30 and May 1 being holidays in several states, the film has bright prospects in the first couple weeks of release at least. Even with Infinity War, the studio, Disney India, has left no stone unturned to attract as many people as it can. Apart from a Hindi dub release, the film is available in Tamil and Telugu, with Rana Dagubatti giving the voiceover of the movie’s villain “Thanos” in the Telugu version.
Apart from a releasing strategy at 2000 screens and a sharp focus on localisation, the studio has also focussed on marketing through TV and digital advertising and forging partnerships with brands across categories.
Another factor contributing to the film’s success is the absence of any significant Bollywood movie running in theatres currently.
Baaghi 2 has run its course, while films such as October have been fairly niche in their appeal. Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor-starrer 102 not out releases on May 4, but that is not likely to be a competition for Infinity War as it is a different genre.