'Shang-Chi' Shatters Expectations With Record $90M Labor Day Weekend Haul
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Marvel's "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" brought some much-needed relief to struggling theaters nationwide by setting a new Labor Day record, hauling in $90 million over the four-day weekend, according to industry estimates released Monday.
The previous record was held by 2007's "Halloween," which earned $30.6 million over the four days, Comscore reported.
The martial arts superhero saga stars Simu Liu in the title role, and also stars Awkwafina, Meng'er Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, Ben Kingsley and Tony Leung.
The film features Marvel's first Asian superhero and comes at a time when the Asian American community is looking for more representation and visibility. In a recent interview, Liu described the struggles he's faced regarding that issue.
"To me at least, very early on in my life, that Asianness was not something that was valued by the culture that I lived in and the society that I lived in," Liu said. "And so I had to hide to try and hide that as much as I could and had to assimilate."
"Shang-Chi" also had the second-best three-day weekend total of the pandemic era, grossing $75.5 million Friday through Sunday at theaters in the United States and Canada. That trails only "Black Widow" which grossed $80 million when it opened in July. "Black Widow" was made available for an added fee on the Disney+ streaming service at the time of its theatrical release, while "Shang-Chi" is only playing in theaters.
Universal's "Candyman" was second with $13.4 million Friday through Monday, one week after opening in the No. 1 spot with $22.3 million.
(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
