Hancock Box Office: Will Smith Superhero Movie Is Huge Hit

The Will Smith superhero movie Hancock, directed by Peter Berg and costarring Charlize Theron, is about to become one of the year’s biggest blockbusters, both domestically and internationally.

Hancock box office: Will Smith superhero movie is a mega-blockbuster in the making

July 4–6 weekend box office: Starring Will Smith, Peter Berg’s superhero movie Hancock – actually, it’s an adventure-psychological dramedy mix – topped the North American (U.S. and Canada only) chart this past Fourth of July weekend, grossing $62.6 million according to final studio figures found at boxofficemojo.com. That’s an impressive amount even if several million dollars below distributor Sony Pictures’ original $66 million estimate.

On its way to becoming one of the year’s biggest hits, the $150 million production (as always, not including marketing and distribution expenses) has taken in $107.3 million since its advance screenings on Tuesday, July 1. (Hancock’s “official” domestic debut took place the next day.)

For comparison’s sake: Also starring Will Smith, Francis Lawrence’s $150 million dystopian adventure drama I Am Legend opened with $77.2 million ($91.2 million over five days) in mid-December 2007, going on to collect $256.4 million domestically and $329 million internationally. Worldwide total: $585.4 million.

Hancock movie cast

Besides Hancock (co)producer and two-time Best Actor Oscar nominee Will Smith (Ali, 2001; The Pursuit of Happyness, 2006), the cast includes Best Actress winner Charlize Theron (Monster, 2003) as Hancock’s former wife and fellow superhuman, who chooses to live life as a suburban wife and mom; and Jason Bateman as a corporate public relations consultant and Theron’s current husband.

Also: Eddie Marsan and Johnny Galecki, plus cameos by two of the movie’s other producers, Michael Mann (who had previously directed Will Smith in Ali) and Akiva Goldsman (whose screenwriting credits include Smith’s I, Robot and I Am Legend).

Year’s fourth biggest blockbuster domestically & worldwide

The Will Smith superhero movie Hancock ultimately collected $227.9 million domestically, trailing only Christopher Nolan’s mega-blockbuster The Dark Knight, the Jon Favreau-Robert Downey Jr. (Marvel) superhero collaboration Iron Man, and Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Internationally, Hancock scored an even more impressive (especially for a non-sequel) $401.5 million. Worldwide total: $629.4 million, thus trailing only The Dark Knight, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and DreamWorks/Paramount’s animated action comedy Kung Fu Panda.

Despite its mega-budget, Hancock was clearly a profitable mega-hit.

Its top international markets were the United Kingdom/Ireland ($49.2 million), Germany ($39 million), France ($30.8 million), Japan ($28.7 million), Spain ($26.3 million), Russia/CIS ($26.1 million), Australia ($19.6 million), Italy ($17.8 million), South Korea ($17.4 million), China ($14.7 million), Mexico ($14.2 million), and Brazil ($13.6 million).

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull passes $300 million milestone

In other noteworthy weekend box office news, Steven Spielberg’s mega-hit Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull added another $3.8 million at no. 7 on the domestic chart. Cume: $306.4 million.

The latest Raiders of the Lost Ark sequel crossed the domestic $300 million milestone on June 29 (Day 39).

In the cast: Oscar nominee Harrison Ford (Witness, 1985), Raiders of the Lost Ark leading woman Karen Allen, Shia LaBeouf, Oscar winners Cate Blanchett (The Aviator, 2004) and Jim Broadbent (Iris, 2001), and two-time nominee John Hurt (Midnight Express, 1978; The Elephant Man, 1980).

“Hancock Box Office: Will Smith Superhero Movie” endnotes

Unless otherwise noted, “Hancock Box Office: Will Smith Superhero Movie Is Huge Hit” box office information via Box Office Mojo. Budget info – which should be taken with a grain of salt – via BOM and/or other sources (e.g., the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Screen Daily, The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Deadline.com, etc.).

Comments about Hancock, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and other titles being hits/profitable or flops/money-losers at the box office (see paragraph below) are based on the available data about their production budget, additional marketing and distribution expenses (as a general rule of thumb, around 50 percent of the production cost), and worldwide gross (as a general rule of thumb when it comes to the Hollywood studios, around 50–55 percent of the domestic gross and 40 percent of the international gross goes to the distributing/producing companies).

Bear in mind that data regarding rebates, domestic/international sales/pre-sales, and other credits and/or contractual details that help to alleviate/split production costs and apportion revenues are oftentimes unavailable, and that reported international grosses may be incomplete (i.e., not every territory is fully – or even partially – accounted for).

Also bear in mind that ancillary revenues (domestic/global television rights, home video sales, streaming, merchandising, etc.) can represent anywhere between 40–70 percent of a movie’s total take. However, these revenues and their apportionment are only infrequently made public.

Will Smith Hancock movie images: Sony Pictures.

“Hancock Box Office: Will Smith Superhero Movie Is Huge Hit” last updated in February 2023.