Deadpool & Wolverine: A Cultural Moment for Cinema in 2024

Deadpool & Wolverine: the unmissable cultural moment of the year attracts over 500,000 fans to cinemas across the region

Cultural moments refer to events happening instantaneously around the world that catch the public’s attention through media content. Last year’s standout was Barbenheimer. This year, the excitement began with Inside Out 2, which has already grossed over US$1.56B worldwide. Now, the release of Deadpool & Wolverine marks yet another significant cultural moment.

Premiered on July 25, 2024, the third part of the Deadpool franchise has ignited the box office with a phenomenal global opening of US$438.3M. After just two weeks, the film has grossed over US$824M. This Marvel blockbuster has broken multiple records, including the 12th biggest opening ever and the second highest global opening, trailing only Avatar: The Way of Water and surpassing Barbie.

This success follows a streak of blockbusters outperforming initial predictions at the summer box office, kicked off by The Bad Boys: Ride or Die and continued by Inside Out 2, Despicable Me 4, Twisters, and more.

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Regional Success and Advertising Impact

In the region, Deadpool & Wolverine dominated the box office across all operators represented by Motivate Val Morgan, achieving more than double the admissions of a typical weekend. The movie clocked in over 500k admissions at cinemas represented by MVM, with 226k admissions coming from the UAE.

Adding this success to the other top summer blockbusters in the region such as The Bad Boys: Ride or Die, Welad Rizk 3 (Arabic), and Inside Out 2, total admissions stand at over 3 million across the MVM circuit – just in a span of seven weeks. This cinematic streak provides advertisers with a unique opportunity to reach a young at heart, affluent audience in an environment of maximum active attention.

Brands Reaping the Rewards

Brands such as BMW, Homecentre, Careem, Opel, Yas Island, Jeddah Season, ROVE Hotel, Hertfordshire University, and Splash were among the notable sponsors for the only Marvel movie of the year. They joined major regular advertisers such as American Hospital, Qatar Tourism, and Tilal Al Gaf, all of whom reaped significant benefits from this cultural moment of the year.

Check out the full list of ads booked to follow or coincide with Deadpool & Wolverine here.

More Cultural Moments:

Deadpool & Wolverine caps the extraordinary second half of cinema in 2024, in line with the trend of H2 performing well every year with major tent-pole releases. This year will be no different. Hollywood movies such as Joker: Folie à Deux, Moana 2, Wicked, Gladiator 2, and The Lion King: Mufasa, Asian movies like Singham Again (Hindi), Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 (Hindi), Vettaiyan (Tamil), Greatest of All Time (Tamil), Bougainvillea (Malayalam), and Pushpa 2: The Rule (Multilingual), are also set to be the cultural moments for cinema in the months ahead.

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Barbie | Cinema Ad Campaigns | 2023

The release of the Barbie movie marks one of the greatest marketing events in the history of movies, creating a lot of buzz among fans of the iconic doll. With a reported marketing budget of US$100M, the film was launched alongside more than a hundred bright pink branding deals worldwide. From Barbie sparkles on Google search results to Barbie-endorsed Crocs and a special Prada line, the Barbie movie marketing campaign painted the world pink and created marketing magic, becoming the biggest cultural movement of the year.

The result of these endeavors was an immense triumph, as the movie directed by Greta Gerwig surpassed expectations, collecting over US$1.2B at the global box office, including an impressive US$1.95M from the UAE alone. With moviegoers flocking to theaters adorned in shades of pink, the film was more than just a cinematic event; it was also a dazzling showcase of brands that seized the opportunity to align with Barbie’s iconic legacy.

Sony Playstation, Samsung Galaxy and more, took center stage by aligning their brand campaigns alongside Barbie in the region.

Check out the full list of brands that hopped on the ‘Barbie Bandwagon’:

PlayStation 5

Country: UAE
Campaign type: Follow a movie