Final 'Twilight' Film Pushes Lionsgate Past $1 Billion U.S. Box Office for First Time

TORONTO – Lionsgate hit a milestone this weekend, with the launch of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 pushing the mini-studio past the $1 billion mark at the domestic box office in a single calendar year.

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Having earlier this year released The Hunger Games as another teen tentpole, Lionsgate on Monday said it expects to cross the $1 billion mark at the international box office and the $2 billion mark at the worldwide box office in the next few weeks.

The latest installment of the Twilight franchise launched with an opening weekend of $340.9 million worldwide.

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That, combined with the earlier Hunger Games release that grossed $408 million domestically, and Lionsgate’s domestic box office take this year is now $1.08 billion, with nearly two months to go in the calendar year, the company reported Monday. 

Lionsgate is also opening The Impossible domestically on Dec. 21, after pulling in nearly $50 million on release in Spain.

"Every member of our motion picture group should take tremendous pride in this singular accomplishment," said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer and vice chairman Michael Burns in a joint statement Monday, referencing the domestic box office to date this year.