Warner Bros.' Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix set a new record for a Wednesday opening earning $44.2 million, easily eclipsing Spider-Man 2's previous mark of $40.4 million.  In fact only four films, Spider-Man 3 ($59.8 million), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest ($55 million), Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith ($50 million) and X-Men: The Last Stand ($45 million) have earned more on their openings days (typically Fridays, which are often the best of the three weekend days for highly anticipated films). 

Although some critics have maintained that this fifth Harry Potter film is not as good as its immediate predecessors, the film shows every sign at this early stage of becoming the top grossing movie in the series so far, perhaps because the impending release of the final book in the Potter series has Pottermania at an all-time high.  In any case it appears as if Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will grab the box office crown away from the Transformers this weekend.  At the this point it appears that only Transformers or Order of the Phoenix has any sort of a chance to catch Spider-Man 3 and win the 2007 box office crown.

For retailers there is a fair amount of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix merchandise (in addition to the books themselves and DVDs of the previous films) including Order of the Phoenix Trading Cards from Artbox Entertainment and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Action Figures from NECA.  And of course those earwax, dirt and rotten egg-flavored Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans from Jellybelly make great counter items.