Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings could have the lowest opening weekend for an MCU film since The Incredible Hulk. The latest entry in the MCU is the first solo entry for a new hero to the MCU since Captain Marvel back in 2019. Anticipation for the film is high, yet with stories about the Delta variant of the COVID-19 virus increasing, there is a chance audiences may sit out on seeing Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings on opening weekend.

Unlike Black Widow, which was released in theaters on Disney+ Premier Access for $30 on the same day, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will release exclusively in theaters for 45 days before heading to streaming. The move was called an experiment by Disney CEO Bob Chapek, to gauge how comfortable audiences are feeling and how a Marvel film can perform only in theaters at the moment. It is a controversial decision to some, given the rising cases of COVID-19 with audience confidence in returning to the theaters having dipped since Memorial Day weekend.

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It appears that it may end up hurting Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings‘ opening box office. According to Boxoffice Pro, long-range tracking for Shang-Chi’s opening weekend puts it in the range of $35 to $55 million. At its highest estimates, it would just barely tie with 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, which opened to $55.4 million, and would put it below Ant-Man, which opened to $57 million in 2015.

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While the projection is low for a Marvel Studios film, given the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still an impressive opening number and could show the strength of the Marvel brand. At its lowest estimation of $35 million, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings would perform better in its opening weekend than Godzilla vs. Kong, Space Jam: A New Legacy, and The Suicide Squad. On its highest estimations, it would be only under F9 and Black Widow for the biggest opening weekends since the pandemic started and would be a big win for Marvel and Disney.

There will be many factors that impact the opening weekend box-office of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and will make comparing its success to other Marvel films difficult. If not for a pandemic, the film could have opened in the range of Doctor Strange’s $85 million, Iron Man’s $98.6 million, or even Captain Marvel’s $154 million. It will need to be judged on the terms of the conditions it is opening in, which is one where audiences may not feel comfortable going out to a theater. If that happens, it could cause a major impact on how Marvel, Disney, and the other studios decide to release films in the coming months.

Source: Boxoffice Pro

Key Release Dates
  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)Release date: Sep 03, 2021
  • Eternals (2021)Release date: Nov 05, 2021
  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)Release date: May 06, 2022
  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)Release date: Jul 08, 2022
  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever/Black Panther 2 (2022)Release date: Nov 11, 2022
  • The Marvels/Captain Marvel 2 (2023)Release date: Feb 17, 2023
  • Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)Release date: Jul 28, 2023
  • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)Release date: May 05, 2023
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Richard Fink
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Richard Fink is a news writer for Screen Rant. He graduated from Arizona State University in 2016 with a degree in Film and Media Production. He loves the finer things in life, like cold Diet Coke on a hot summer day. Richard is a fan of all things Star Wars, Marvel, DC, and Film History.

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