International Box Office: ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2’ Tops Foreign Box Office For Fourth Straight Weekend

 

By Frank Segers

 

Thanks to a humongous China debut yielding $26.5 million from 4,200 locations, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 emerged once again as the foreign box office champ, grossing $63.05 million ($1.25 million more than Sunday’s estimate) at over 15,000 screens in 61 markets.

 

Foreign gross total for the final installment of the most lucrative film franchise ever stands at $792.4 million, way more than double Death Hallows’ domestic take of $343.1 million.

 

In the U.K., where the market cume over four rounds broke the $100-million mark ($102 million), the weekend take was $4.6 million. Other big markets were Japan ($4.75 million, $80.4 million), Germany ($4.4 million, $69.6 million) and France ($4 million, $55.4 million). Deathly Hallows has been the foreign box office champ for the last four consecutive frames.

 

Premiering in 36 markets on the weekend and pushing its way to the No. 2 spot is The Smurfs, the 3D Sony Animation co-production about the tiny blue creatures adventures in New York City. Sony says first place ranks were recorded in “virtually every market we tracked.”

 

Weekend take overall was $47.9 million (including previews) drawn from 5,960 locations in a total of 42 markets. Top markets included Brazil ($6.65 million from 319 locations), France ($5.9 million from 714 venues), Mexico ($5.5 million from 901 sites) and Germany ($6.3 million from 575 situations). A No. 1 Austria bow generated $1.1 million from just 80 situations for a per-screen average of nearly $14,000.

 

Early foreign cume for The Smurfs comes to $55.5 million amassed since its offshore opening on July 27.

 

20^th Century Fox’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes opened offshore simultaneously with its domestic bow, generating $23.8 million from 3,454 locations – for a per-site average of $6,904 –in 25 territories. (Worldwide, the opening round registered $78.6 million.) It ranks No. 4 on the foreign circuit on the weekend.

 

Directed by Rupert Wyatt and starring James Franco, Rise premiered No. in at least nine markets with Spain ($5 million from 517 sites), Australia ($5.15 million from 359 locations) and Russia ($5.2 million from 1,012 situations) leading the list. Fox said weekend action exceeded expectations “given only four of the top 15 international markets are in release.”

 

Riseis the seventh installment of Fox’s long-running feature series begun in 1968 with the original Planet of the Apes, directed by Franklin Schaffner and costarring Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowell and Kim Hunter. (The Apes franchise also spawned three tv versions that aired in the early-to-mid 70’s, one of which was an animation treatment.)

 

The last feature edition was director Tim Burton’s 2001 remake, Planet of the Apes, costarring Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter and Tim Roth, which grossed $360.7 million worldwide of which $182.3 million was generated overseas. Rise will open this week in 15 markets including the U.K., France, Germany and Belgium.

 

Finishing No. 3 on the weekend was Marvel Studios’ Captain America: The First Avenger, which has flown past the $100-million overseas gross mark ($100.8 million) since it began its foreign run on July 22. Worldwide, the comic book adaptation distributed by Paramount has registered  $244 million so far.

 

Latest weekend drew $24.3 million from 5,530 locations in 34 territories — bolstered by openings in Spain ($2.5 million from 381 spots), Hong Kong and Israel.  Captain America opens in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and India this week.

 

No. 5 on the weekend was Director Michael Bay’s Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which opened offshore on June 29, has collected a total gross of $697.6 million, the most of any title ever released overseas by distributor Paramount.

 

Latest weekend pulled $21.2 million from 8,184 venues in 52 markets including strong holdovers in Japan and China and a No. 1 bow in Indonesia ($1.8 million from 98 locations for a per-site average of $18,367).

 

Pixar’s Cars registered$20.1 million in its seventh weekend on the foreign circuit, “representing approximately 91% of our potential (overseas) performance,” said distributor Disney.  Foreign cume stands at $258.4 million while the 3D animation’s worldwide take comes in at about $443.1million.

 

The foreign run of Super 8, director J.J. Abrams’ sci/fi-adventure co-produced by Steven Spielberg, has generated $76.8 million since June 9. Weekend tally was $15.9 million from 2,864 locations in 27 markets thanks to openings in 10 territories including France (No. 1 with $5.5 million drawn from 522 spots). In the U.K. and Ireland, the second place debut generated $3.6 million from 525 situations. Openings in Netherlands, Brazil, Colombia and Panama are due this week.

 

Dominating the South Korean market was C.J. Entertainment’s release of director Kim Ji-Hun’s Sector 7, an action thriller about a viral monster attacking underground oil fields. The No. 1 bow registered an estimated $11.6 million at 908 sites. The film is the first local language title to be digitally re-mastered in 3D for playoff in Imax’s 10 locations in the market.

 

Warner’s comedy-drama Horrible Bosses has an early international cume of $25.1 million after a $7.9 million stanza at 2,255 screens in 32 markets.  France and Italy open Aug. 17.

 

Fox’s Jim Carrey comedy Mr. Popper’s Penguins elevated its foreign gross total to $80.9 million thanks to a $5.9 weekend at 3,093 screens in 33 territories. A No. 3 opening in the U.K. delivered $2.5 million from 474 spots.

 

Universal’s Bridesmaids drew $4.5 million from 1,643 sites in 34 territories, lifting its overseas gross total to $90 million. With 19 more territories still to play, the female-oriented comedy opens in France, Spain and in Switzerland this week.

 

Sony’s Bad Teacher starring Cameron Diaz has grossed $89.2 million since opening overseas on June 17, with the latest weekend furnishing $4.7 million from 1,728 screens in 37 markets. Also from Sony is the Kevin James talking animals comedy Zookeeper, which drew $3.28 million from 2,078 sites in 37 markets for a foreign cume of $50.1 million amassed since July 6.

 

Warner’s Green Lantern nudged its foreign gross total to $45.7 million so far after  a $3.5 million weekend at 1,570 sites in 19 territories.  Openings in France, Australia and Mexico are due this week.  

 

Other international cumes: DreamWorks Animation/Paramount’s Kung Fu Panda 2, $451 million (thanks to a $1.8 million weekend at 1,779 spots in 33 territories); Sony’s Friends With Benefits, $7.7 million (after a $1.9 million weekend at 617 screens in nine markets); Universal’s Honey 2, $7.5 million; Fox’s X-Men: First Class, $206 million; and Mars Distribution’s Midnight in Paris, $15.9 million in France only.

 

Also, Universal’s Hanna, $7.6 million from the U.K. and Australia; Fox’s Rio, $341.7 million; Universal’s Hop, $75.6 million; Focus Features’ Beginners, $5 million; Mars Distribution’s Case Depart, $13.6 million in France only; Universal’s Senna, $8,2 million; Focus Features’ Biutiful, $19.9 million; Fox’s Monte Carlo, $5.96 million; Universal’s Paul, $59.2 million; Pathe’s Les Tuches, $11.7 million in France only; Fox’s Assalto Ao Banco Central, $8.6 million in Brazil only; Focus Features’ Jane Eyre, $2,1 million; and Universal’s Fast Five, $394.7 million.