Wonder Woman is now the biggest live-action film directed by a woman

Wonder Woman made an estimated $25 million at the US box office this weekend, and in doing so set a new record: The movie is now the biggest live-action movie in Hollywood history directed by a woman.

According to Box Office Mojo, Wonder Woman has made $652 million worldwide and $318 million domestically since its release on June 2. The previous record holder was the Abba-inspired musical Mamma Mia, which was directed by Phyllida Lloyd and made $609 million worldwide ($144 million domestic) in 2008.

In terms of superhero films, Wonder Woman has already made more money domestically than movies like The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), Man of Steel (2013), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), and Doctor Strange (2016). It has yet to beat those movies in worldwide box office figures, but it’s only in the fourth week of its theatrical run and will likely remain in theaters for several more weeks.

It’s also within striking distance of the domestic hauls for last year’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($330 million) and Suicide Squad ($325 million). What separates those two movies from Wonder Woman is that Wonder Woman has seen less of a decrease in box office sales since its opening weekend. Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad both saw dramatic drops after their premieres (and in Batman v Superman’s case, that drop was a historic one).

These numbers matter to both fans and Hollywood insiders, because there’s unbelievable pressure on Wonder Woman to do well at the box office. It’s an unfortunate reality that in the past, poorly received female superhero movies like Catwoman and Elektra have been cited as a reason not to create more superhero movies centered on female characters. Though, given Wonder Woman’s success, a sequel at this point is nearly inevitable — it’s simply a matter of giving director Patty Jenkins what she wants.

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