‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ had the second-highest opening weekend of all-time, beating out ‘Avengers: Infinity War’

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” outpaced Sunday box office estimates to become the second-highest domestic opening of all time.

While Sony initially anticipated the Marvel Cinematic Universe flick would tally $253 million during its first weekend in theaters, the film topped $260 million. In doing so, “No Way Home” surpassed the $257 million haul made by “Avengers: Infinity War” in 2018.

“Avengers: Endgame” remains the the highest-grossing domestic film opening of all time with $357.1 million, according to data from Comscore.

The tally was so strong, Spider-Man’s weekend haul is more than the total domestic gross of any movie released during the pandemic, Comscore data shows.

“At every turn, this movie just keeps swinging above expectations,” said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com. “It’s a remarkable achievement for any time and, even more so, during the pandemic.”

Audiences rushed to theaters early this weekend to catch “No Way Home” before potential spoilers could be leaked online, leading to a $121.5 million in ticket sales on Friday, including $50 million from Thursday night preview shows. Sony reported that the film added $73.9 million in sales on Saturday and rang up $64.1 million at the box office on Sunday.

“It’s likely that the massive press coverage for the incredible, record smashing performance of ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ caused a bigger than expected Sunday haul,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “This demonstrates why the reporting of weekend figures on Sunday is so important to studios.”

Box office analysts expect audiences to return to theaters to see the film multiple times, as was the case with “Endgame.” It’s also anticipated that the film will have solid ticket sales over the next few weeks.

“Even with Omicron concerns in play right now, there is a clear runway for a strong run through the holidays pending any extreme developments,” Robbins said. “Word of mouth is through the roof. Moviegoers are embracing this event film and the theatrical experience driving it.”