‘Guardians Of The Galaxy’ Scores Biggest Debut Of 2014

James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy has grossed a solid $11.2 million after Thursday night showings, scoring the title for the biggest box office opening of this year.

Expectations for Marvel’s new franchise to surpass the $70 million mark are enhanced after the outstanding debut results, which exceeded Captain America: The Winter Soldier’s $10.2 million opening. The fellow Marvel tentpole went on to gross a whopping $95 million for the weekend in early April.

At the moment, 2007’s The Bourne Ultimatum holds the record for highest August opening with $69.2 million, with 2001’s Rush Hour 2 following with $67.4 million.

Guardians of the Galaxy, which cost $170 million to produce, is the first from Marvel that isn’t part of the Avengers universe. It expects to come in first this week at the box office and includes a diverse cast, starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Lee Pace, Bradley Cooper (voice of Rocket Raccoon), Vin Diesel (voice of Groot), Djimon Hounsou, John C. Reilly, Glen Close and Benicio del Toro.

Currently, the film has received a 91 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It will be playing the widest August release ever – topping G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra’s 4,007 showings – in roughly 4,080 theaters by Friday morning in North America (3,200 of which are in 3D).

With all the excitement around Guardians, Marvel and Disney have already announced plans at Comic-Con International for a sequel to release on July 28, 2017, with Gunn returning to direct.

The weekend’s other wide releases include Universal Pictures’ James Brown biopic Get on Up, which grossed an estimated $371,000 after Thursday night showings in over 1,769 locations. The film will expand to 2,466 theaters on Friday, and is expected to make between $12 million to $14 million.