With ‘Godzilla vs. Kong,’ box office shows signs of life

“Godzilla vs. Kong” made $9.6 million at the box office on opening day — a record for the pandemic. The action film that has two famous monsters battling is expected to make $30 million over the weekend, which would be a much-needed boost to the movie theater industry that was wiped out over the past year.

In another promising sign, the film has already done well overseas, making more than $120 million. “Godzilla vs. Kong” may end up being the first movie to do well at the box office in 2021, which was not necessarily expected because the film is also available to stream on HBO Max. But with theaters partially reopened, fans may find it worth the trip to see this spectacle on the big screen.

What’s uncertain is how much box office revenue the film lost by going to streaming at the same time. HBO Max is after new subscribers, and the streamer likely got some new signups solely for this movie, but WarnerMedia hasn’t released those numbers.