It’s kind of incredible to believe, but Marvel’s Avengers: The Age of Ultron is well on the way to breaking even!  This is because, while it won’t open domestically till May 1 (though there were showings for critics), its already premiered overseas in 11 foreign markets, where its estimated to earn over $160 million over the coming weekend.

Avengers: Age of Ultron was produced for somewhere in the ballpark of $250 million, though considering how massive a production it is compared to the first film (it takes place in the United States, South Africa, Seoul, and other countries, and has more characters, which typically means more special effects) the cost only increased by $25 million (which I have a sneaking suspicion has a lot to do with Issac Perlmutter).

And I know for most people $25 million is nothing to sneeze at (myself included!) but for a special-effects heavy extravaganza like Age of Ultron, it’s actually not that much money. As I have said for awhile now, the $1.5 billion earned by the first movie is not only going to be surpassed, but it will be so in record time.