Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Crushes Records, Topping Largest Box Office Weekend of All Time by Brad Brevet December 20, 2015 Star Wars: The Force Awakens stormed the box office and walked away with an estimated $238 million in its first three days domestically (including $57 million in Thursday night "previews") along with another $279 million internationally for a massive $517 million worldwide opening. Suffice to say, this shatters the domestic box office opening weekend record of $208.8 million set by Jurassic World earlier this year, but the record-breaking doesn't end there.
In just its first day of release Force Awakens brought in an estimated $120.5 million setting a new record for the largest Friday, opening day and single day. All on its own, that opening day was also enough to break the previous December opening weekend record of $84.62 million set by The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in 2012. Additionally, the film now holds the following domestic records:
Largest Thursday Previews: $57 million* Previous Record: $43.5 million (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2) Largest Friday, Opening Day, Single Day: $120.5 million (estimated) Previous Record: $91 million (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2) Domestic Opening Weekend: $238 million (estimate) Previous Record: $208.8 million (Jurassic World) Highest Per Theater Average (Wide Opening): $57,571 (estimate) Previous Record: $48,855 / 4,274 theaters (Jurassic World) Top Opening Weekend for PG-13 Rated Film: $238 million (estimate) Previous Record: $208.8 million (Jurassic World) Top Holiday Opening Weekend**: $238 million (estimate) Previous Record: $158 million (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire) Biggest Weekend Overall (Top 12 Gross): $294.5 million Previous Record: $266 million (June 12-14, 2015) Biggest December Weekend (Top 12 Gross): $294.5 million Previous Record: $259.9 million (Dec 25-27, 2009) December Single Day: $120.5 million (estimated) Previous Record: $37.13 million (The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey) Widest December Opening: 4,134 theaters Previous Record: 4,045 theaters (The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey) December Opening Weekend: $238 million (estimate) Previous Record: $84.62 million (The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey) Fastest to $100 Million: 1 Day Previous Record: 2 Days (Jurassic World) Global IMAX Opening Record: $48 million Previous Record: $44.1 million (Jurassic World) Domestic IMAX Opening Record: $30.1 million Previous Record: $20.9 million (Jurassic World) * The Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 record included midnight only screenings while Force Awakens screenings began at 7 PM on Thursday and included Star Wars marathon ticket sales, tickets that were sold for as much as $59.99 each. ** Holiday is defined as the first Friday in November through New Year's week or weekend. Domestically, Force Awakens did fall short of a few records such as the largest Saturday and Sunday totals, both held by Jurassic World. Subsequent weekend records, however, are still up for grabs along with the fastest to $300 million and so on, not to mention the overall domestic record currently held by Avatar at $760.5 million.
Based on averages over the past couple of years, a 3-3.5 multiplier doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility, which would put the domestic run somewhere around $714-833 million. However, with Force Awakens playing somewhat similarly to how Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 played during its opening weekend, Potter's 2.5 multiplier can't be overlooked, which would give the film a $565 million domestic run. That said, Potter dipped a massive 72% in its second weekend. With Christmas around the corner, Star Wars definitely won't be dropping that much next weekend, but we're talking about uncharted territory here, which makes a future forecast just as difficult as it was predicting the film's opening weekend.
Internationally Force Awakens fell short of Jurassic World's international opening weekend record ($316.1 million) as well as its global opening record of $524.9 million. That global number, however, may still be in play as Disney is reporting an estimated $279 million international opening on approximately 30,000 screens, which leaves it just $7.9 million shy of that global record as the film currently sits at $517 million worldwide.
That international opening wasn't short on records either as it included the largest opening weekends of all-time in the UK (4-day), Australia, Russia, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Austria, Poland (3-day), Denmark (5-day), Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Croatia, Ukraine, Iceland, Serbia, New Zealand. Second biggest opening weekend in France, Belgium, Israel and Chile. The top grossing territories were the UK ($48.9M), Germany ($27.3M), France ($22.7M), Australia ($18.9M) and Japan ($13.5M).
Key among this opening is the fact it has not yet opened in China, which generated over $99 million for Jurassic World on its opening weekend. However, as the Wall Street Journal pointed out earlier this week, Star Wars isn't the known quantity in China it is elsewhere in the world. In fact, it wasn't until June of this year that the first three films in the franchise were first screened in China at the Shanghai international film festival and the Star Wars prequels only grossed a combined $18.7 million upon their 1999, 2002 and 2005 release. Disney has done a huge marketing push in China, but we'll have to wait until the weekend of January 9 to see if it pays off.
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
No spoilers here, please. Use the other thread. Thanks.
which thread is for nerds? both?
If I had known then what I know now...
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Comments
by Brad Brevet
December 20, 2015
Star Wars: The Force Awakens stormed the box office and walked away with an estimated $238 million in its first three days domestically (including $57 million in Thursday night "previews") along with another $279 million internationally for a massive $517 million worldwide opening. Suffice to say, this shatters the domestic box office opening weekend record of $208.8 million set by Jurassic World earlier this year, but the record-breaking doesn't end there.
In just its first day of release Force Awakens brought in an estimated $120.5 million setting a new record for the largest Friday, opening day and single day. All on its own, that opening day was also enough to break the previous December opening weekend record of $84.62 million set by The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in 2012. Additionally, the film now holds the following domestic records:
Largest Thursday Previews: $57 million*
Previous Record: $43.5 million (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2)
Largest Friday, Opening Day, Single Day: $120.5 million (estimated)
Previous Record: $91 million (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2)
Domestic Opening Weekend: $238 million (estimate)
Previous Record: $208.8 million (Jurassic World)
Highest Per Theater Average (Wide Opening): $57,571 (estimate)
Previous Record: $48,855 / 4,274 theaters (Jurassic World)
Top Opening Weekend for PG-13 Rated Film: $238 million (estimate)
Previous Record: $208.8 million (Jurassic World)
Top Holiday Opening Weekend**: $238 million (estimate)
Previous Record: $158 million (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire)
Biggest Weekend Overall (Top 12 Gross): $294.5 million
Previous Record: $266 million (June 12-14, 2015)
Biggest December Weekend (Top 12 Gross): $294.5 million
Previous Record: $259.9 million (Dec 25-27, 2009)
December Single Day: $120.5 million (estimated)
Previous Record: $37.13 million (The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey)
Widest December Opening: 4,134 theaters
Previous Record: 4,045 theaters (The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey)
December Opening Weekend: $238 million (estimate)
Previous Record: $84.62 million (The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey)
Fastest to $100 Million: 1 Day
Previous Record: 2 Days (Jurassic World)
Global IMAX Opening Record: $48 million
Previous Record: $44.1 million (Jurassic World)
Domestic IMAX Opening Record: $30.1 million
Previous Record: $20.9 million (Jurassic World)
* The Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 record included midnight only screenings while Force Awakens screenings began at 7 PM on Thursday and included Star Wars marathon ticket sales, tickets that were sold for as much as $59.99 each.
** Holiday is defined as the first Friday in November through New Year's week or weekend.
Domestically, Force Awakens did fall short of a few records such as the largest Saturday and Sunday totals, both held by Jurassic World. Subsequent weekend records, however, are still up for grabs along with the fastest to $300 million and so on, not to mention the overall domestic record currently held by Avatar at $760.5 million.
Based on averages over the past couple of years, a 3-3.5 multiplier doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility, which would put the domestic run somewhere around $714-833 million. However, with Force Awakens playing somewhat similarly to how Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 played during its opening weekend, Potter's 2.5 multiplier can't be overlooked, which would give the film a $565 million domestic run. That said, Potter dipped a massive 72% in its second weekend. With Christmas around the corner, Star Wars definitely won't be dropping that much next weekend, but we're talking about uncharted territory here, which makes a future forecast just as difficult as it was predicting the film's opening weekend.
Internationally Force Awakens fell short of Jurassic World's international opening weekend record ($316.1 million) as well as its global opening record of $524.9 million. That global number, however, may still be in play as Disney is reporting an estimated $279 million international opening on approximately 30,000 screens, which leaves it just $7.9 million shy of that global record as the film currently sits at $517 million worldwide.
That international opening wasn't short on records either as it included the largest opening weekends of all-time in the UK (4-day), Australia, Russia, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Austria, Poland (3-day), Denmark (5-day), Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Croatia, Ukraine, Iceland, Serbia, New Zealand. Second biggest opening weekend in France, Belgium, Israel and Chile. The top grossing territories were the UK ($48.9M), Germany ($27.3M), France ($22.7M), Australia ($18.9M) and Japan ($13.5M).
Key among this opening is the fact it has not yet opened in China, which generated over $99 million for Jurassic World on its opening weekend. However, as the Wall Street Journal pointed out earlier this week, Star Wars isn't the known quantity in China it is elsewhere in the world. In fact, it wasn't until June of this year that the first three films in the franchise were first screened in China at the Shanghai international film festival and the Star Wars prequels only grossed a combined $18.7 million upon their 1999, 2002 and 2005 release. Disney has done a huge marketing push in China, but we'll have to wait until the weekend of January 9 to see if it pays off.
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Vegas 93, Vegas 98, Vegas 00 (10 year show), Vegas 03, Vegas 06
VIC 07
EV LA1 08
Seattle1 09, Seattle2 09, Salt Lake 09, LA4 09
Columbus 10
EV LA 11
Vancouver 11
Missoula 12
Portland 13, Spokane 13
St. Paul 14, Denver 14
http://www.avclub.com/article/calvin-and-hobbes-mashup-brings-out-cutest-possibl-230579
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Rogue One Trailer.
Looks pretty good
Was she in a Tie Pilots outfit in the end?
All that I once held as true
I stand alone without beliefs
The only truth I know is you.