Executive producer Susan Downey and actor Robert Downey Jr. arrive at the world premiere of Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment's 'Iron Man 2' held at El Capitan Theatre on April 26, 2010 in Hollywood, California. (Photo : Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)
Weeks after its initial release date, "Doctor Strange" continues to rack up box office numbers all over the world. According to the latest stats, the Benedict Cumberbatch starrer has toppled "Iron Man" to become Marvel's highest performing "single hero origin movie."
"Doctor Strange" has earned at least $615 million worldwide since it opened in theaters, Forbes reported. That number puts "Doctor Strange" the Marvel Cinematic Universe's biggest "single hero origin story" film, surpassing "Iron Man" which grossed $585 million worldwide. In third place is "Ant-Man" with $520 million, followed by "Thor" with $449 million and "Captain America: The First Avenger" with $317 million.
Although "Doctor Strange" is currently the highest-ranking single-character debut film in the MCU, it has yet to dethrone "Guardians of the Galaxy" as the highest-grossing Marvel film of all time. The movie made about $773 million worldwide during its release.
"Doctor Strange" is official part of 2016's top 10 highest-grossing movies in North America and worldwide. The movie particularly secured a good following in China, which served as the number one overseas market for the movie, accounting to $109.6 million of the movie's global earnings, IGN reported. The numbers for "Doctor Strange" are expected to increase in January as it will open in Japan on Jan. 27.
"Doctor Strange" and "Iron Man" films have often been compared to one another, with some critics pointing out that the former appears to be a reboot of the latter. However, "Doctor Strange" has proven itself to be more than just a magical version of "Iron Man."
Some critics note that both Stephen Strange and Tony Stark started off as largely successful people in their respective fields. Both got into life-changing incidents that lead to them becoming superheroes.
For Tony Stark, it was being kidnapped by the Ten Rings. For Stephen Strange, it was the car crash. Personality-wise, the only obvious difference perhaps is that while Tony Stark is a self-confessed playboy, Stephen Strange has only ever had eyes on that one woman who can match his intellect.
