The box office king this week is the new James Bond movie, "Spectre," which is hardly a surprise because both fans and critics are raving about the movie.
According to a report by Variety, "Spectre" absolutely dominated box office records by raking in $80.4 million in its opening week and enjoyed the biggest U.K debut in history.
With now 24 films to its name, the James Bond franchise shows no signs of slowing down as it solidified its status as the most successful film series ever. Moreover, the spy action/thriller took advantage of the launch in its native country, Great Britain, and earned a massive $63.8 million in its first seven days of release in the U.K, surpassing the previous record held by "Harry potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban."
It is important to note that no spoilers are mentioned here because the movie is just about to open in the United States on Nov. 6, where it is expected to also top the box office. In addition, it is also projected to earn as much as $80 million.
However, there are rumors spreading that this is going to be Daniel Craig's last role as the martini-drinking, Aston Martin-driving, suave secret agent. Which is a shame because critics and fans has been praising Craig for injecting the right mixture of gritty realism and sense of danger into the series, after Pierce Brosnan made the movies no different from "Austin Powers."
Despite the acclaim he's receiving, Daniel Craig suggested in interviews that he would rather slit his wrists rather than appear in another sequel, making the media speculate about a possible replacement. However, we sure do hope he's just joking around.
In a similar report by The Guardian, "Spectre" not only trumps the box office, but the critics as well. So far, it has received generally positive critical response, including a five-star review from the same publication.
And although it's earning serious bucks, pundits and box office analysts are saying that it still has a long way to go to match the takings of this year's biggest film so far _ Universal's "Jurassic World."
Cinema Blend reported that the opening box office returns for "Spectre" already beat its predecessor, 2012's "Skyfall."
It's interesting to note that "Skyfall" is the first Bond movie to cross the $1 billion mark so that means everyone is expecting "Spectre" to do the same.
Will the latest James Bond movie cross the $1 billion mark?
