When the smoke finally cleared at the box office last summer, it appeared to be a safe bet that Iron Man 3 would be the highest grossing film of 2013. That all changed though on Thursday when according to Box Office Mojo Iron Man 3‘s $409 million domestic total was finally overtaken by The Hunger Games Catching Fire. In the process, Catching Fire has now become the first female-led movie to lead the yearly box office since The Exorcist in all the way back in 1973. As of this writing, Hunger Games Catching Fire has grossed an estimated $414 million domestically and counting.
This is quite an accomplishment considering all the advantages in Iron Man 3‘s favor. It was the first major summer release, had the star power of Robert Downey Jr. and 3D surcharges: none of which can be said about The Hunger Games Catching Fire. Instead it was released in the generally less lucrative month of November but thanks to little initial competition and great word-of-mouth has been able to hold over very well over the past couple of months. Even more impressive is that it’s been able to make so much without the aid of 3D charges and has already been able to out gross all the Harry Potter films, Lord of the Rings and all the Marvel movies with the exception of The Avengers.
Do you think that The Hunger Games Catching Fire was deserving of it’s top spot at the box office? Give us your thoughts in the comment section below.
Source: Slashfilm