Batman Vs Superman news and update: The Smash Hit Takes $424 Million At Global Box Office

The Batman-Superman battle in 'Dawn of Justice' has been slammed by critics. But the public loved it, and the Warner Bros seem to have won the final round.

"It's the fans that speak the loudest," said Jeff Bock, a box office analyst for Exhibitor Relations. "It proves how strong these characters are."

Dawn of Justice had a historic opening in more than 40,000 screens in 66 markets, including 16,000 in China, 4,242 in the US, 1,701 in the UK and 1,696 in South Korea.

Zack Snyder's "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" was a runaway success in the first weekend, drawing $170.1 million at the U.S. box office and $254 million over the seven seas. The total is thus $424.1 million, which is a historic fourth biggest premiere show.

The domestic winnings too were a record March release, overtaking "The Hunger Games" in 2012, and validating the Warner Bros' decision to move the "Man of Steel" sequel's release from May to March.

The movie has been heavily panned by critics, yet the emotional baggage of the stars and the comic books seem to have won the day. In "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," Ben Affleck explained the disconnect between critics and fans, telling Fallon, "We're not going for the film critic circle. This is an audience movie."

"People actually like this movie," Affleck added.

Henry Cavill agreed. "The audience's voice is loudest and after this weekend the audience, at least partly, will have spoken," he said.

Jeff Goldstein, head of distribution for Warner Bros, said: "There was a disconnect there between what critics wrote and the fan interest and the fan response.''

Still, the movie falls heavily short of expectation. As Mark Kermode put it:  "Fans may find something of value in the sheer scale of it all but, despite the gargantuan expense, it's hard not to feel short-changed. For all its overcranked spectacle, I emerged from Batman v Superman in a soporific state; foggy of head, heavy of heart, wondering if it was all just a bad dream."