Black Panther is an unqualified hit. Critics love it. Fans love it. Oraph loves it. It's setting box office records and inspiring people who are finally seeing themselves represented in a major studio tentpole release. With success like that, you can only imagine how happy Disney's CEO is. Bob Iger recently took to Twitter to thank everybody involved in the production of Marvel's newest hit. Needless to say, he's heaping praise on everybody that made Black Panther both a financial success and a quality film. According to Iger...
The world has embraced Black Panther, which has obliterated expectations, broken records & shattered myths. Powerful storytelling that touches hearts, bridges cultures, opens minds. Grateful to Marvel studios, Ryan Coogler & the cast and crew. #BlackPanther #WakandaForever
As the CEO of Disney, it's obvious that Bob Iger is going to be excited by the records that Black Panther is breaking, specifically at the box office. The movie had the fifth highest three-day opening in movie history, coming in just behind Marvel's own Avengers. While box office estimates had been steadily increasing over the last few weeks, the movie still surpassed, or in Iger's words, "obliterated," expectations. At the end of the day, Iger is mostly concerned with the financial health of the Disney company, and success like this is only to continue to improve the company's overall profile.
Beyond the film's financial success, however, Bob Iger also commends the movie bridging cultures and shattering myths. Being a massive financial success is one thing, but if the movie isn't actually any good, bringing in those box office dollars is a lot more complicated. Black Panther isn't just being hailed as the next big Marvel movie, but also as a genuinely great film. So often, movies that are "about things" might be great, but they're rarely box office hits. Black Panther looks to be a unique sort of film that has something to say, and will end up saying it to a lot of people.
The biggest question now is just how long Black Panther 's success will last. Did everybody who was excited to see it go on opening weekend, which could result in a significant drop in its second weekend, or are there even more people who are waiting in the wings to check it out, or who might plan to go more than once. If the last time we saw the movie audience embrace fresh representation in a superhero film, Wonder Woman is any indication, Black Panther could be on its way to several consecutive weeks of box office success.
Disney has had massive years at the box office recently, but if Black Panther is any indication, the studio could be getting ready for the biggest year yet. That's likely to make Bob Iger really happy.
