Warner Bros. ‘ “ One Battle After Another ” took $8.8 million across Friday and previews from 3,634 locations in North America. That haul includes grosses from advance fan-first screenings on Tuesday, which played premium large-format auditoriums.

The studio didn’t pinch on pennies for Paul Thomas Anderson and Leonardo DiCaprio ‘s hyper-contemporary action epic, spending more than $130 million before a global marketing campaign. To the director’s credit, Anderson delivered the goods. “One Battle After Another” already has the stature of a modern classic among critics, instantly positioning itself as an awards season heavyweight. On top of that, it’s playing like a crowdpleaser, with moviegoer survey firm Cinema Score polling a superb “A” grade. Compare that the “C” grade that Ander

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