They were the first big cinema releases we've had in months

Christopher Nolan's latest epic 'Tenet' and superhero movie 'The New Mutants' hit cinemas in various territories this weekend.

While 'Tenet' was first out the door, debuting internationally in 41 markets, 'The New Mutants' followed just a couple of days later.

Mind you while the former got mostly positive reviews, the former has been blasted, even by its co-creator.

As the first Hollywood tentpole to hit the big screen since the current health crisis, 'Tenet' fared better than expected.

It made $53 million-plus, including $7.1 million in the U.K. and $5 million from IMAX theatres (248 screens in 38 markets), against its $200 million budget.

Warner Bros. reports (via THR) that 32 markets across Europe, Middle East and African region, accounted for $37 million of the weekend's grosses.

This was in spite of the reduced capacity (approximately 20%) which cinemas are currently operating on.

'Tenet' begins previews in this US today (August 31st). It opens across America officially on September 3rd, but won't be playing in New York or Los Angeles.

It will hit theatres in China, another major market, on September 4th.

The film got a mid-week release here in Ireland, showing in cinemas from August 26th.

'The New Mutants', meanwhile, also performed better than expected. It grossed $7 million over the weekend across the 2412 theatres it screened on in the USA.

It amassed $2.9 million from 10 markets outside America. Thus its global intakes were $9.9 million in all.

The 'X-Men' spin-off had been a long time coming, with its initial release date set for 2018.

'Bill and Ted Face the Music', which hits Irish cinemas September 23rd, also fared well. It made $1.06 million from 1,007 screens across America.