• by Wayne Friedman , October 24, 2022

With the help of a national TV airwaves $21.7 million in overall TV spend, per iSpot.tv, "Black Adam" opened to a strong $67 million in U.S. and Canadian box-office revenue this past weekend, according to Comscore.

“This is a solid debut for the latest from the DCEU [Warner Bros’ DC Extended Universe] and solidifies [Dwayne] Johnson as one of the few true movie stars in the business,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst, for Comscore. 

While "Adam" scored Johnson his biggest opening in a leading role, it’s a relatively modest start for a superhero movie, according to analysts.

“Black Adam” totaled 1.6 billion impressions for its entire campaign starting in June, with 5.945 equivalent 30-second airings. Warner Bros.' cable TV networks TBS and TNT produce 191 million impressions and 165.4 impressions respectively -- the most of any network.

Top programming in the period where advertising ran included NFL Football (Fox and NBC), and post-season Major League Baseball (which airs on Warner Bros. TV networks).

Also starting up this past weekend was Universal Pictures' "Ticket to Paradise" -- starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts -- which posted $16.3 million, on 3,543 screens.

“[The movie] delivers a good old-fashioned moviegoing experience and should do well in the weeks to come as it closes in on $100 million in global receipts,” says Dergarabedian.

The overall national TV spend for "Paradise" -- from June 29 through October 23 -- was $8.4 million. It ran 1,725 equivalent 30-second airings.

Two returning horror movies were next: Paramount Pictures “Smile” in its fourth week got to $8.4 million, while Universal’s “Halloween Ends” in its second week scored $8 million.

Total box-office theatrical revenue for the U.S. and Canada is up 104% to $5.9 billion compared to 2021 (through October 23), but is down 35% from the pre-pandemic period.