Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse webs in $16 million in Thursday previews

The hype train for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was chugging along after the incredibly positive reception of the first movie. In fact, people were already saying it was better than its predecessor, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The continued adventures of Miles Morales’ journey into the multiverse promised an even crazier ride, with a newer villain, The Spot, as well as additional variations of Spider-Man from other universes than we’ve already seen. The first film’s success may have even inspired the direction in which Spider-Man: No Way Home decided to take.

According to Deadline, the Thursday previews for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which sees the return of Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld in the roles of Miles and Gwen, brought in a whopping $16 million. This makes it the second-best preview night for an animated film ever. The best preview night belongs to another superhero-themed film with Disney/Pixar’s Incredibles 2, which had garnered $18.5 million back in 2018.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s Thursday take is four and a half times more than Into the Spider-Verse‘s Thursday preview, which came in at $3.5 million. This was before the start of the weekend’s earnings with $12.6 million on Friday and webbing in $35.3 million for the three-day opening. The projections for Across the Spider-Verse are said to be around the area of $75 – $90 million. Reviews for this entry have been amazing as it currently stands at a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes.

The film wasn’t expected to do the numbers of a live-action Marvel film. Especially since this one is predominantly a Sony off-shoot and a rare animated adaptation of a Marvel character. The movie is also one of the longest-running animated films of all time as it clocks in at 2 hours and 20 minutes. However, this opening has already bested a few of the previous Spider-Man previews which include Spider-Man: Homecoming ($15.4M), Venom: Let There Be Carnage ($11.6M), Venom ($10M), and Spider-Man 3 ($10M). Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are continuing to impress in the animation game after their huge hit with The Lego Movie as well as its sequel, not to mention the past popularity with their Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs films.