"Avengers: Age of Ultron" debuted to a huge $187.6 million at theaters opening weekend, giving it the second largest weekend ever at the box office.
AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON claimed the second largest domestic opening weekend of all-time with an estimated $187.66M. #Avengers #AgeOfUltron
- BoxOffice (@BoxOffice) May 3, 2015
Despite the huge number, that's far lower than analyst expectations, which projected the film to open at anywhere from $210 million - $230 million.
It's also less than the first film, "The Avengers," made back in 2012. That film surprised everyone when it debuted at a whopping $207.4 million to become the highest-grossing opening movie at the box office.
By no means is the early $187.6 million figure a disappointment. Sure, many thought it would easily cross the $200 million mark, but "Age of Ultron" now holds the highest-opening weekend in 2015 so far (and will likely only be beat out by "Star Wars," another Disney film). It's also one of the largest opening weekends at the box office ever.
All together, "Age of Ultron" has now made over $626 million worldwide.
Here are the largest opening weekends at the box office. Disney now dominates three of the top five spots. Superhero movies comprise four of the five spots.
| Movie | Release Date | Opening Weekend | Worldwide Gross |
| 1. "The Avengers" | 5/4/2012 | $207.4 million | $1.5 billion |
| 2. "Avengers: Age of Ultron" | 5/1/2015 | $187.6 million | $626 million so far |
| 3. "Iron Man 3" | 5/3/2013 | $174.1 million | $1.2 billion |
| 4. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2" | 7/15/2011 | $169.2 million | $1.3 billion |
| 5. "The Dark Knight Rises" | 7/20/2012 | $160.9 million | $1.1 billion |