As expected, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” crossed the $100 million mark today at the Chinese box office, a testament to Disney’s aggressive marketing of the film in a country largely unfamiliar with the 39-year-old franchise.
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Starring Ice Cube and Kevin Hart, the sequel debuted 18 percent below the $41.5 million three-day start of its 2014 precursor, Xinhua reported.
Major Oscar contender “The Revenant”, a violent frontier revenge thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio, came in second place at $37.5 million.
The Force Awakens now sits in third with $1.87BN, with a projection to finish between $2.1BN – $2.3BN; though these new receipts from China may even squander its chances of overtaking Titanic.
“Ride Along 2” walked away with over $34 million to take the top spot. Germany. The local-language comedy, based on a best-selling travel book, has earned around $11 million in theatrical release so far.
Universal’s, a unit of Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) Ride Along 2 topped the long Martin Luther King Jr.
“The Force Awakens” became the highest-grossing film in North American history earlier in the month when it grossed $764.4 million in the United States, putting it over the $760.5 million mark set by “Avatar” over the life of the film.
Rounding out the top five was Daddy’s Home (three-day gross $9.5 million, total gross $129.4 million), which has begun to cool off after a gangbusters few weeks.
In total, there were around 1.8 million admissions over the weekend in Germany, accounting for a $17.4 million (€16 million) gross.
Lionsgate’s Norm of the North pulled in US$6.7 million from 2,411 locations.
The Revenant also continued to play well overseas, coming in # 2 with $31.5-M from 25 markets for a $58.6-M foreign tally and $151.8-M worldwide box office take. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”, $47.3 million. 2.
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Chinese animated film “Boonie Bears” nabbed third place with $16 million, pushing the film version of a popular children’s show to $21 million in revenue.
