Thanks to an original that greatly surpassed critical expectations, a lack of competition and ongoing enthusiasm for the “Avengers” franchise, “Captain America: Winter Soldier” garnered an impressive take in its Friday box office debut.
Considerably besting its July 2011 predecessor, “Captain” garnered $37.0 million in its debut Friday. It is on track to earn between $90 and $100 million for the weekend.
2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger” settled for a $25.7 million opening night grab and $65.1 million in its first weekend.
The take also eclipses that of 2013’s “Thor: The Dark World,” which earned $31.9 million in its first night. It went on to earn $85.7 million in its opening weekend.
The rest of the top five on Friday: “Noah” ($4.9 million), “Divergent” ($4.2 million), “God’s Not Dead” ($2.2 million) and “The Grand Budapest Hotel” ($1.8 million).