After dozens of casting calls, the Georgia-filmed Marvel movie, Spider-Man: Homecoming, hit theaters across the country and around the world. The latest Spider-Man movie surpassed box office expectations making money than what analysts initially predicted.
Spider-Man: Homecoming made $117 million in its opening weekend, beating industry estimates of $80 to $110 million.
The Marvel movie character movie was the second largest in its history behind Spider-Man 3, according to Sony Pictures.
So what is the new Spider-Man movie?
In the latest reiteration of the classic comic book character, Spider-Man’s alter ego Peter Parker, which is played by British actor Tom Holland, has to handle his high school responsibilities and manage his secret life as a masked crime fighter. He then encounters Andrian Toomes, a villainous arms dealer, who is played by Michael Keaton.
The movie cost $175 million to produce and has already made more than $250 million in global box office sales, according to Box Office Mojo. Spider-Man: Homecoming spent $66.1 million dollars in Georgia, according to the Georgia Department of Economic Development’s Office of Film, Music and Digital Entertainment. The movie filmed across the state starting June 20th through September 21st last year.
So how did this deal between Sony and Marvel transpire?
This movie’s release comes after a 2015 deal between Disney and Sony, which allowed for Spider-Man to appear alongside other Marvel characters. Tom Holland is the third actor to play Spider-Man in 15 years, following Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire.
Marvel and Georgia’s thriving film industry
Georgia’s film tax incentive of up to 30% has helped catapult the Peach State’s film industry into one of the most influential in the world topping Los Angeles, New York, and London. Marvel has several movies now shooting in Pinewood Atlanta Studios, just a few miles away from the city of Atlanta. In fact just last week, the latest Marvel movie Thor: Ragnarok has been posted casting calls for Vikings and other featured talents.