May Day!: The Iron Man 3 Debut

There was a major WIN in Tinseltown this past weekend, and it came in the form of 90 pounds worth of super heroic, first-class iron. $169,189,427 million was the mark set by Warner Bros. Studio’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Granted, not an easy mark to reach – let alone surpass, but if anyone could do it, Stan Lee’s Tony Stark could. With some help from Disney and Marvel Studios, director Shane Black, screenplay writer Drew Pearce and Producer Kevin Feige, Iron Man 3 served up a box office debut performance for the record books. Over the weekend, the film grossed $175.3 million in just over 42 hundred theaters. To use the term “regal,” to describe this performance may be an understatement, as the film lands behind only it’s “feeder” film in The Avengers, which released the same exact weekend just a year ago and grossed a solid $207.4 million (U.S. Box Office) in its opening weekend.  Over the years, Disney has shifted its focus on movie franchise films like Iron Man, to serve as a catalyst for multiple installments, spin off franchises, toy sales, and theme-park rides, creating the entrepreneur’s ideal “residual” scenario. Disney’s Executive Vice President of Distribution, Dave Hollis noted, "It is an extraordinary start. The start on the U.S. side is something that we are exceptionally proud of." With an approximate $200 million production budget, and total revenue generation of somewhere near $680 million over 11 days, makes this installment yet another smash for the Disney Corporation.With that, my final piece of advice: Do not be the last to buy your ticket. You are going to wants parts of this wave. Who knows when Tony Stark will return?