International Box Office: Potter Powers into Second Place
July 27, 2011
After just 12 days of release, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 raced into second place for the year on the international chart with $564.36 million, putting it just ahead of Transformers: Dark of the Moon. This includes its weekend haul of $119.54 million, which was earned on 16,529 screens in 60 markets, while its worldwide total reached $837.90 million, putting it into third place for the year, just behind Dark of the Moon. It is still miles away from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, which is nearing $800 million internationally. I'm not saying the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 won't get there, but I'm also unwilling to bet money it will.
As for individual markets...
Transformers: Dark of the Moon nearly doubled last weekend's haul earning $77.84 million on 13,708 screens in 57 markets for a total of $558.32 million internationally and $884.16 million worldwide. This past weekend the film set a record in China with $56 million during its four-day opening. $56 million. In China alone. There is a chance China's economy will crater in the next few years (look up China Ghost Cities for a picture of their housing bubble) but if they avoid that, China could become the single biggest movie market in the world before too long.
Cars 2 remained in third place with $17.50 million on 6,001 screens in 29 markets for totals of $174.70 million internationally and $351.08 million worldwide. This weekend it debuted in the U.K., but had to settle for second place with $5.77 million on 486 screens. This is an improvement over the original, but well back of Kung Fu Panda 2, for instance. Reached $500 to $600 million worldwide is still the goal, while the high end is a whole lot more likely than the low end.
Mr. Popper's Penguins reached this chart for the first time in its run with $12.28 million on 3,888 screens in 47 markets for a total of $56.42 million after more than a month of release. It had a trio of second place openings in France ($2.59 million on 444 screens); Mexico ($2.53 million on 820); and in Spain ($1.26 million on 358). It will soon surpass its domestic total internationally, which is enough to be considered a midlevel hit overall.
Singham opened in fifth place with $10.52 million on 1,974 screens in 34 markets. It was strong in India, but weak in most other markets.
With China just around the corner, the film is on pace to reach $1 billion worldwide, and it could get there possibly as soon as this time next week.
Filed under: International Box Office, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Cars 2, Mr. Poppers's Penguins, Singham