According to The Wrap, METALLICA‘s new movie, “Metallica Through The Never”, opened this weekend to an estimated $1.67 million — the best opening for a concert film ever at IMAX theaters. The movie, which debuted on 308 3D IMAX screens, earned an estimated $780,000 on its first day. That gave the film a per-location average of $5,482. A blend of concert movie and fictional narrative, it will expand to 650 theaters next weekend.

Financed by the METALLICA members themselves at a budget of $18 million, “Metallica Through The Never” is the first new release via Picturehouse, the full-service independent film marketing and distribution company started in 2005, which reopened its doors with founder Bob Berney at the helm. The film, written and directed by Nimród Antal (“Kontroll”, “Predators”), stars members of the iconic rock band and Dane DeHaan (“Chronicle”, “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”). DeHaan plays a young band crew member who is sent out on an urgent mission while the band is playing a rousing live set in front of a sold-out crowd and unexpectedly finds his world turned completely upside down.

“The hardest thing in Hollywood is trying to sell an idea that has no point of reference,” METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich told the Los Angeles Times. “If you can’t sit there and go, ‘It’s like ‘The Bourne Identity’ meets ‘Private Ryan’ meets ‘Star Trek’, they just look at you like, ‘What are you talking about?'”