“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” set a record for the highest-grossing opening weekend at the United States and Canadian box office with an estimated $238 million in sales, industry monitor Rentrak said Sunday.
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The much-anticipated release was expected to generate millions.
“Our sole focus has been creating a film that delivers that one-of-a-kind Star Wars experience, and director J.J. Abrams, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, and the Lucasfilm team have outdone themselves”, Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn said in a release.
The Force Awakens simultaneously opened around the world just about everywhere but China, where it debuts in January. But Star Wars fans are also known for repeat viewings, and with all that extra holiday free time they might be able to keep Force Awakens afloat for a couple more weekends.
And in a sign indicating the movie will have an especially long run at multiplexes, opening day audiences have given “The Force Awakens” an A CinemaScore – including an A+ grade among women and A+ scores with audiences under 18 and under 25.
More important, with audiences in the US and most foreign countries embracing the movie, Disney is setting up “Star Wars” to be a success in many media for years to come, including annual big-screen sequels and spinoffs, merchandise, television shows and theme-park attractions. Add that to its Friday numbers, and The Force Awakens earned the highest single-day opening of any movie ever with $120.5 million.
Needless to say, the $4 billion purchase by Disney of Lucasfilm is looking to be money well spent.
The financial force was strong with the new “Star Wars” film.
Critics applauded Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which features newcomers Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac alongside original stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher.
The latest film returns to “a galaxy far, far away” some 30 years on from the action of 1983’s Return of the Jedi.
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The seventh Star Wars movie will take in about 15 times as each of the two other openers – Universal’s Tina Fey-Amy Poehler comedy “Sisters” and Fox’s “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip”. That should make the $200-million-plus production very profitable for the company.
