International Box Office: International Box Office is Essential for The Expendables

August 23, 2012

The Expendables 2 earned first place during its international debut with $23.01 million on 3,741 screens in 19 markets. It was led by Russia where it made $8.12 million on 804 during its opening weekend. It also topped the chart in Mexico ($3.32 million on 1,249) and in Italy ($1.91 million on 379). It only managed fourth place in the U.K. with $3.12 million on 451 screens. By comparison, The Expendables earned much less in Russia, Mexico, and Italy, but much more in the U.K. Overall, the sequel has made a little more than its predecessor, but it is too soon to tell where it will end up.

The Dark Knight Rises was pushed into second place with $21.4 million on 8,870 screens in 61 markets. Its international total is now $488.6 million, which is higher than its predecessor finished with. Its worldwide total rose to $898.4 million, which is the 22nd best of all time. On Monday, it became the 22nd film to reach the $900 million mark, and with Italy ahead, it has chance to become the 13th film to reach $1 billion.

Ek Tha Tiger opened in third place with $21.36 million. It broke records in its native India, thanks in part to the holidays there, but no other information was released.

Total Recall remained in fourth place with $18.85 million on 5,586 screens in 53 markets lifting its total to $58.03 million after three weeks of release. The film opened in first place in France with $3.33 million on 524 screens and in Brazil with $2.08 million on 485. On the other hand, it had to settle for third place in South Korea with $2.86 million on 448 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $5.14 million. The film was pushed into second place in Russia with $2.38 million on 1,100 screens over the weekend for a running tally of $10.80 million. The film already has more internationally than it has domestically, but with a massive budget, it will need to continue in the top five for a while to break even any time soon.

The Bourne Legacy rose to fifth place with $18.1 million on 2,018 screens in 18 markets for a still early opening of $28.0 million. The film had to settle for second place in the U.K., but with $7.25 million on 498 screens, so it was still strong there. In Australia, it earned first place with $4.39 million on 435.

Lethal Hostage opened in first place in China and sixth place internationally with $17.29 million over the weekend.

Brave dipped 8% to $16.4 million on 5,984 screens in 46 markets for a total of $180.7 million internationally and $409.8 million worldwide. This past weekend, the film finally opened wide in the U.K. earning first place with $8.27 million on 553 screens over the weekend for a total of $12.98 million including its run in Scotland. The film has yet to open in Italy, Scandinavia, South Korea, and other markets, so it should stick around on the top ten for a bit longer. It won't become one of the biggest hits of the year, but it will earn enough to reach profitability during its initial push into the home market.

The Bullet Vanishes opened in second place in China and eighth place internationally with $12.79 million over the weekend.

Ted fell from second to ninth with $11.6 million on 2,938 screens in 26 markets for a total of $138.21 million internationally and $351.27 million worldwide. The film has plenty of markets left to open in, while it has already made more internationally than most were expecting before it hit theaters, so the studio has to be very happy with the results so far.

Ice Age: Continental Drift fell to tenth place with $11.10 million on 7,128 screens in 60 markets for totals of $649.43 million internationally and $799.62 million worldwide. The film made a profit just based on its international numbers, so the studio might tailor the next installment for audiences outside of the United States. That could be part of an interesting trend.

The Avengers returned to the chart in 13th place with $6.30 million on 845 screens, all of which came from its first place opening in Japan. Including the midweek numbers, the film has $17.42 million in that market. Internationally it has $863.4 million while its worldwide total rose to $1.481 billion. It remains the highest grossing non-James Cameron film of all time and could pad its lead a bit more.

Looking further down the list, we find Prometheus in 20th place with $3.05 million on 1,603 screens in 6 markets. Since this time last week, it crossed $200 million internationally and has a total of $204.47 million outside the domestic market and $330.66 million worldwide.


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Filed under: International Box Office, The Avengers, Brave, The Dark Knight Rises, Total Recall, The Bourne Legacy, Ted, Ice Age: Continental Drift, Prometheus, The Expendables 2, Ek Tha Tiger