The Walt Disney Co. earnings destroy the previous opening record set by Universal's Jurassic World, which drew $208.8 million this summer.
To say that the force is strong with this one is an understatement.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens brought in a galactic $238 million over
the weekend, making it the biggest North American debut of all time
according to studio estimates on Sunday.
The Walt Disney Co. earnings destroy the previous opening record set
by Universal's Jurassic World, which drew $208.8 million this summer.
Internationally, the film brought in $279 million, bringing its
global gross to $517 million - second only to Jurassic World's global
bow of $525 million. But the dinosaurs had the added benefit of China -
Star Wars won't open there until January 9.
This is just the latest in a laundry list of records set by J.J.
Abrams' film, the seventh in the franchise, which had analysts
anticipating a debut anywhere from $150 million to $300 million.
The "X-factor" was quality. While The Force Awakens drew enormous
pre-sales, the film was kept under lockdown from the press and critics
until mere days before it was released to the public. Reviews turned out
to be stellar (95 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes), as did early audience
reaction, who gave the film an A CinemaScore.
Rentrak's Senior Media Analyst Paul Dergarabedian said that's the key
element that may push the film to the $2 billion mark by the end of its
run. Many are already going back for a second helping.
"The enthusiasm has really turned into a cultural event," said Dave
Hollis, Disney's executive vice president of theatrical distribution.
"It's unbelievable."
"It feels historic. The marketing team has embarked on a two-plus
year journey to create this event feel," Hollis added. "It's hard to
think you could replicate this, but never say never."
Males overwhelmingly drove the astronomical earnings, comprising 58 per cent of the audience.
"Many of the bigger films of the past few years have been driven by
that often marginalised female audience," Dergarabedian said. "This
proves that if you put the right film in the marketplace, the guys will
show up in big numbers. You can still break records with one gender
being the dominant one."
He predicted that over time, Daisy Ridley's protagonist may help even
the gender breakdown. Hollis agreed, noting that the breakdown evened
out across the weekend too. Friday audiences were 63 per cent male, he
said.
The film also drew mainly adults, who made up 71 per cent of the
audience. Teens accounted for only 9 per cent, but those numbers may go
up in the coming weeks as holiday vacations kick in.
IMAX, 3D and other premium large format screens further helped drive
the massive earnings. Nearly half of moviegoers - 47 per cent -chose to
see the film on the generally pricier screens. IMAX screens alone
accounted for $48 million of the global earnings.
But Star Wars didn't fly alone this weekend. A few other movies
attempted to provide some counterprogramming and ended up with
comparatively decent results.
source: http://www.khaleejtimes.com/citytimes/hollywood/star-wars-the-force-awakens-blasts-opening-weekend-record-with-238-million
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