Despite getting a drubbing from critics before its debut last Friday, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice charged to an impressive $166.1 million (which is lower than initial estimates) at the domestic box office over the weekend. According to Variety, that's the most any DC film has earned in theaters to date, the biggest March debut ever, and the seventh-biggest opening weekend in history.

The movie made $416 million globally

Taking international box offices into account, the film took in $416 million overall. That's tremendous news for Warner Bros., which needed the film to win big at theaters to justify its $250 million production budget. The film's success also helps pave the way toward the rest of the DC Extended (read: cinematic) Universe films, including Wonder Woman, the next Batman films, and of course Justice League.

It's also good news for fans of the film, who've been considerably kinder in their reviews than critics. Even though Dawn of Justice currently has a score of 29 percent Fresh rating on RottenTomatoes, it has an Audience score of 73 percent. With DC fans voting with their dollars, Warner Bros. has every reason to proceed as planned and keep on making superhero movies.

Update 11:15am ET: Studio estimates were originally projected to hit $170.1 million overall, but have since been revised. The new tally now gives Batman v Superman the seventh highest opening weekend in history, down from the sixth. The above article has been revised to reflect the new information.