For much of the last several months, there has been a constant question of when movie theaters will find their feel again. From the release of Black Widow in June, which hit Disney+ on Premier Access simultaneously, through to movies like No Time To Die and Ghostbusters: Afterlife in the last couple of months, it has become clear that the $1 billion club is going to be a lot more exclusive in the near future. Marvel Studios however has always been up for the challenge and their joint venture with Sony on Spider-Man: No Way Home could very well produce Hollywood’s first $1 billion movie in almost two years after the movie obliterated all competition with a massive $587 million worldwide opening, which in turn gave it the third-highest opening ever.

While there may be worries over the Omicron variant of Covid across the world right now, when Marvel’s biggest heroes call it seems that not even a global pandemic can get in their way, as Spider-Man fans turned out in huge numbers to make Spider-Man: No Way Home not only the most successful Spider-Man movie ever, but the third most successful opening of any movie, coming in behind - you guessed - Avengers: Endgame and Avengers: Infinity War making it a Marvel trinity at the top of that particular stack of records.

"This weekend's historic Spider-Man: No Way Home results, from all over the world and in the face of many challenges, reaffirm the unmatched cultural impact that exclusive theatrical films can have when they are made and marketed with vision and resolve," Tom Rothman, Sony's Motion Picture Group chairman and CEO, commented. "All of us at Sony Pictures, are deeply grateful to the fabulous talent, both in front of and behind the camera, that produced such a landmark film. Thanks to their brilliant work, this Christmas everyone can enjoy the big screen gift of 2021's mightiest Super Hero -your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man."

Having teased fans for months, Spider-Man: No Way Home surpassed expectations that were already as high and as hyped as they could possibly be to deliver a movie that brought high action, emotion and nostalgia to the MCU. Rotten Tomatoes ratings have seen the film hold a solid 99% audience rate from over 10,000 reviews, critic reviews currently sit at 94% and with cinemas needing a hero to save the day more than ever, there could not have been a time for Marvel’s most celebrated character step up to the challenge.

As it stands, Spider-Man: No Way Home has already grossed more worldwide than all but two Hollywood releases of the last two years, which are No Time To Die and F9 sitting on $773 and $726 million respectively. There is no one who believes that those films will not be surpassed in the coming weeks, and there is no doubt there are people at the top already eyeing the Asian film release of The Battle at Lake Changjin, which holds the year’s highest-grossing movie title at the moment with $902 million. With a number of foreign markets still to open, including the all-important China Market which is still to officially confirm whether the movie will be getting released there, Spider-Man: No Way Home has a long way to climb before it is done.