HOLLYWOOD - “Deadpool & Wolverine” starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman raked in a staggering $205 million domestically in its opening weekend, according to Comscore.

Fans were clearly ready and undeterred by its R rating, the first for a movie in Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. The buddy superhero comedy is now the highest R-rated film debut.

“This most unconventional of superhero movies has really struck a chord with audiences around the globe and the results prove once again that there is nothing like the communal movie theatre experience to create a pop culture phenomenon,” Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at Comscore, told NBC News by email on Sunday.

This film also marks the first time both Deadpool and Wolverine appear in a Marvel Studios film. The last time both characters starred alongside each other was 2009’s “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” under 20th Century Studios. Disney acquired 20th Century Fox in 2019, which brought X-Men back into the Marvel fold.

Story Date: August 1, 2024