AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON Opens With $27.6M From Thursday Screenings

Avengers: Age of Ultron is already on its way to a huge weekend at the box office. The movie grossed $27.6 million from Thursday night screenings, according to Variety.

When The Avengers opened in 2012, the movie raked in $18.7 million in Thursday and midnight showings. The original Avengers went on to set a domestic opening weekend record of $207.4 million.

Extrapolating midnight box office numbers to try to figure out how much a movie will make over an opening weekend isn't a perfect science. The Avengers' $18.7 million mark fell way short of the record for preview screenings, $43.5 million by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2.

The final Harry Potter movie went on to set the all-time single day record with $91.1 million, but that movie didn't have the box office stamina that the first Avengers did. The Avengers turned an $18.7 million midnight mark into an $80.8 million Friday and a $207.4 million opening weekend. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2's $43.5 million preview mark resulted in a $91.1 million Friday but only a $169.2 million opening weekend.