‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Passes ‘Titanic’ to Become #2 All

For context, it took Avatar 72 days to reach $US700 million. That’s just $20 million away from topping Avatar’s record holding $760 million domestic total, a goal it will probably hit before next weekend rolls around. It will soon surpass The Avengers ($1.52 billion) and Furious 7 ($1.515 billion) to become the fourth-biggest movie of all time. Meanwhile Sisters came in with a healthy $12.6 million. According to Reuters, the movie franchise is taking the place of other known box-office records and threatening to overtake the top grossing motion picture in history set by the epic science fiction. It hasn’t broken any records in Asia, however, but it is expected to be a huge success when it will be released in China this coming January 9, 2016.

The Hateful Eight, $US16.2 million.

The official numbers are in, and Disney’s science fiction space opera has managed to break a few records including the all-time domestic box office record for New Year’s Day. It now stands at $740.26M domestic and $770.5M foreign for a global total of $1.51B. The film has earned $US61.7 million so far. By comparison, Django Unchained’s final gross was $162.8 million, 5.4 times its $30.1 million opening weekend. Moreover, for the first time in 40 years, a film that’s not directed by Cameron, George Lucas or Steven Spielberg will be atop of the list.

Quentin Tarantino’s “The Hateful Eight” is at #3 in its nationwide expansion earning $16.2-M for the weekend from 2,474 locations for an early domestic take of $29.6-M.

Looking at possible Oscar contenders, Jennifer Lawrence’s Joy, Will Smith’s Concussion and the ensemble piece The Big Short had nominal drops, the best being Short. The real-life based sports drama was off a spot to #8 with $8 million, a 24% slip from its okay starting weekend. That’s an excellent total for the $50 million production, which will pass $100 million this week, becoming the 28th and final film of 2015 to do so.

Check back each week for box office previews and results and the latest movie reviews from 22News.