EXCLUSIVE: Marvel Studios’ badass duo continue to rake in money for what’s shaping up to be a $21.5 million-plus Monday at the domestic box office, if not more, according to sources tonight.
At that level, Deadpool & Wolverine easily ranks as the best Monday ever for a R-rated movie, beating the Monday of 2016’s Deadpool, which fell on a Presidents Day holiday when it earned $19.7M.
Among all Mondays in July, right now D&W is shaping up as the fourth best after Spider-Man 2 ($27.6M, July 5, 2004), Barbie ($26.1M, July 24, 2023) and The Dark Knight ($24.4M, July 21, 2008). Tuesday is bound to be a bountiful day as well for D&W. Last year on its Tuesday, Barbie grossed another $26M.
In addition, we can tell you that the promotional partner campaign for Deadpool & Wolverine was worth $135M in media value, which was more than what Disney racked up for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and more than the first and second Deadpool promo partner spend combined. That’s a lot, particularly when you factor that Deadpool & Wolverine didn’t have an automobile partner (which, by the way, aren’t common for R-rated movies).
The promo partner campaign was spearheaded by Disney SVP Marketing Ryan Stankevich and the studio’s EVP Marketing Partnerships & Special Events Lylle Breier, with support from Ryan Reynolds’ studio and digital marketing agency Maximum Effort. The angle? Assemble a list of partners that can sell Deadpool & Wolverine‘s irreverent tone and subversive heart. Of the campaigns that Maximum Effort worked on were Adidas, Aviation American Gin, Dave & Busters, Heineken, Jack in the Box, and Heinz.
Marvel reteamed with Adidas, the athletic shoe company churning out the first Deadpool line comprised of Adidas Originals and performance product inspired by and featured in the movie. The collection is available to buy in select markets beginning August 1. Of note in the footwear is the color blocking and distinct detailing of the Deadpool and Wolverine characters, including tongue-and-cheek jokes on sock liners, censored language characters, and storage pouches — a nod to the excessive amount of pouches the Merc with a Mouth keeps on his suit. There were activations on TikTok featuring an exclusive “ShoePool” character which is a shoe variant of Deadpool.
For the first time ever, Reynolds’ Aviation American Gin teamed with a major motion picture and released a limited-edition series of seven bottles with designs inspired by Deadpool & Wolverine. The film and gin were splashed at 1,500 in-store retail displays. There was also a push at bars, restaurants, theaters and special events with themed cocktails. Reynolds updated his The Vasectomy cocktail timed to Fathers’ Day in what was a streaming, digital and social media paid media support push.
In celebration of Dogpool, who steals the film, Disney teamed with Best Friends Animal Society, making it the pic’s official nonprofit partner. To celebrate best friends and four-legged heroes, a PSA ran via donated media across broadcast networks and print media, which delivered 2M+ views in 48 hours. There were also local on-air segments highlighting Dogpool and pet adoptions across major markets.
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Deadpool & Wolverine were emblazoned on 70M Coca-Cola cans and bottles. Here’s a spot:
At Dave & Busters, there was a film-wrapped claw machine filled with movie swag, like the Best Friends key chain.
Digiorno was a premier sponsor with four limited-edition pizza flavors on display and available at Target, Walmart, etc.
Google launched a first-of-its-kind easter eggs via its “circle to search” gesture on Android devices globally, surprising fans who gesture-search Deadpool, Wolverine, Ryan Reynolds or Hugh Jackman, with custom animations. The partnership was promoted via a custom video online and in-store at 7,000 T-Mobile locations and on 650,000 out-of-home screens.
Heineken was a big sponsor, with the U.S. campaign getting global extensions in international markets including Mexico, China, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Bahamas and South Africa with paid media and retail support.
Playing off the red and yellow pairing of Deadpool and Wolverine was Heinz ketchup and mustard. There was an audacious ad that was part of a U.S. campaign with extensions in Canada, Mexico, Australia, China, Brazil, Chile and Costa Rica. There was also support via billboards, bus shelter displays, in-store POS and paid digital/social.
Jack in the Box served up a limited-time menu at 2,000 locations inspired by Deadpool’s favorite snack: chimichangas. Also on the menu were spicy chicken strips and waffle sticks. There was point-of-sale signage, a themed Coca-Cola Freestyle flavor (Mini Chimi Chaser) and Jackpool gift-with-purchase antenna ball heads. At San Diego Comic-Con, fans got the chance to experience a complete store takeover, and saw wrapped trolleys. There was also a Blind Al blind pack giveaways featuring comic and film art inspired by the character.
Old Spice had a custom spot featuring Deadpool’s roommate Blind Al (who can certainly still smell). The ad was accompanied by retail support at Walgreens (more than 2000 stores), Kroger (1500 stores) and paid media.
Xbox was not only a premier sponsor spanning 14 countries, but was also the exclusive livestream Twitch partner as well. The video game console made “cheeky controllers” which featured custom backside molds inspired by Deadpool’s and Wolverine’s derrieres. There was also a Deadpool suit-wrapped Series X consoles with Katanas. Outdoor ads for this were plastered in Times Square and in Wolverine’s canonical hometown of Alberta, Canada. The company was also another one of the pic’s Comic-Con sponsors and hosted a cosplay meetup, showcasing new in-game Fortnite Deadpool assets.