"Wakanda Forever" dominates box office with 2nd biggest debut of 2022

Details: "Wakanda Forever" opened across more than 4,300 theaters and experienced one of the biggest openings of all time, finishing behind “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.”

• Overseas, it earned an additional $150 million from 50 territories, bringing its worldwide total to $330 million, per AP.

Yes, but: The first "Black Panther" project grossed $75.8 million on its opening Friday. It ended with a $202 million domestic debut back in 2018, per CNBC.

The big picture: The high-grossing debut for the "Black Panther" sequel is a welcome sign as Disney and movie theaters faced a tough summer of fewer movies and fewer blockbusters.

• But it is another notch in the belt for Disney, which had two major Marvel hits — "Thor: Love and Thunder" and "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" — earlier this year.

What's next: The next big Marvel film "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" will drop in February 2023.

• It's a must-watch as the film's villain will be Kang the Conquerer (played by Jonathan Majors), who first appeared in "Loki" as He Who Remains.
• Kang will be the major villain in the MCU leading into the next two "Avengers" movies — "The Kang Dynasty" and "Avengers: Secret Wars."

More from Axios:

• 🎞️ 1 big thing: "Black Panther" juggernaut
• How the MCU is addressing its messy history with diversity
• Marvel promoted "Wakanda Forever" on its own
• Movie theaters suffering from Hollywood’s slow summer

Editor's note: This story has been updated with box office numbers released Sunday.