Star Wars: The Force Awakens crushes box office records

“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has broken several records, including the biggest Thursday preview gross, biggest Friday and biggest single day gross, the first film to gross $100 million in one day, and biggest December debut, among others, as reported by Comicbook.

The movie could become the highest-grossing movie of all time, box office analysts said.

Shares in film giant Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) rose on Monday after new blockbuster Star Wars broke box office records since its release last Thursday. Astonishing though it is, that is just the second biggest opening weekend globally, behind Jurassic World, which took $US524.9 million on its opening weekend in June.

Collecting US$238 million in Canadian and USA ticket sales, breaking the previous record of US$208 million held by Jurassic World, the global total for the latest Star Wars movie stood at US$517 million as of Sunday.

$48.9 million – The film’s opening box office in the United Kingdom.

Men made up the bulk of ticket buyers, comprising 58% of the opening weekend audience, and despite the franchise having been bought out by the kid-orientated Disney, adults represented 71% of the crowd with families only accounting for 20% of consumers.

95% – The film’s score on review site RottenTomatoes.com.

That film had the advantage of opening in China on the same weekend it opened everywhere else.

Disney paid $4bn for Lucasfilm and the Star Wars series in all.

It also set records in Britain, Australia, Russia and elsewhere as fans embraced a new chapter in the galactic battle between good and evil.

The Force Awakens also stars Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis and Domhnall Gleeson, plus a secret stormtrooper cameo from Bond actor Daniel Craig.

32 – Number of years between “The Return of the Jedi” and “The Force Awakens“.

The director has said that he hopes the film will make adult viewers feel like a kid again.