It was never going to be “The Avengers,” but “Iron Man 3” achieved the best feat it possibly could–the second-best opening weekend of all-time.
Box office estimates reveal that the latest “Iron Man” sequel earned a hefty $175.3 million, besting the original $150 million forecast and even the revised $165-170 mark that came out Friday. With such a total, the well-received film was able to top the $169.2 million mark set by “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” and deliver the second best opener at the domestic box office.
With “Iron Man 3” attracting so much attention this weekend, films like “Pain and Gain” had no prayer of staying hot. That movie, last week’s champ, earned just $7.6 million this weekend, representing a major decline of more than 60% from last weekend’s haul.
“42” grossed $6.2 million for third, besting “Oblivion” ($5.8 million) and “The Croods” ($4.2 million).
