Spider-Man: Brand New Day tipped for bumper opening weekend

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is being tipped to be one of the biggest box office debuts ever.

The film from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) will open in cinemas around the world between Wednesday and Friday this week.

Tom Holland returns as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. The superhero is trying to move on after the events of 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, which ended with Doctor Strange, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, using his powers to make everyone forget Peter Parker is Spider-Man.

The film is eyeing a massive opening weekend, with some analysts projecting a debut upwards of $300 million (£225 million) in the U.S. alone, Variety reports.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is also expected to have a huge international start, with the superhero sequel projected to take in up to another $300 million in markets outside the U.S.

Critics have backed up the positive projections, with the first wave of reviews coming in overwhelmingly favourable.

Sony Pictures, which is distributing Brand New Day, is eyeing a more conservative debut of around $195 million (£147 million), well short of what most analysts are predicting.

It will have to outperform even the most ebullient predictions to overtake the biggest debut ever, Marvel's Avengers: Endgame, which opened to a whopping $357 million (£269 million) in the US in April 2019.

Other movies in the $200 million (£150 million) plus club include Avengers: Infinity War, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi, Deadpool & Wolverine, Jurassic World, The Avengers, and Black Panther.

The budget for Spider-Man: Brand New Day was an estimated $225 million (£169 million).