Yesterday, we reported that, despite its incredible success in such a short amount of time, there are still a fewbox officerecords thatStar Wars: The Force Awakenshasn’t broken yet. Today, we can cross one of those records off the list, withStar Wars: The Force AwakenssurpassingAvatar’s six year all-time domestic record of $760.5 million. While it tookAvatar314 days to amass $760.5 million, including a late summer special edition re-release,Star Wars: The Force Awakensbroke that record in just 20 days.
Star Wars: The Force Awakenshas now earned $1.56 billion, which is the fourth-highest global gross ever, behindJurassic World($1.669 billion),Titanic($2.186 billion) andAvatar($2.788 billion). This global haul is even more impressive since directorJ.J. Abrams' adventure hasn’t even opened in one of the world’s largest markets yet, China, where it is set to debut on January 9. Another reason the numbers are so impressive is its theatrical rollout is nowhere near the biggest in history.The Twilight Saga: Eclipsestill hold the record for the widest release ever, debuting in 4,468 theaters back in 2010.Star Wars: The Force Awakenshas the 33rd widest opening ever, debuting in 4,134 theaters, a theater count lower than other 2015 blockbusters such asThe Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2(4,175) andMinions(4,301).
Deadlinereports that this new all-time domestic record can likely be attributed to the rise of 3D and the growth of digital screens, which was largely spawned byAvataritself. The site reports that, since 2010, whenAvatarwas in the midst of its theatrical run, there has been a 168% increase of digital screens in North America, to 41,518, with 3D digital screens accounting for 39% (16,146) of that figure. Rentrak’s PostTrak reports that 45% of all audiences watchedThe Force Awakensin RealD 3D, with 42% in 2D, and 12% inIMAX.
TFAstill has a long way to go before its theatrical run is over, so it’s certainly possible that it could shatter every major box office record before it leaves theaters. If the blockbuster meets its current $55.2 million projection for this coming weekend, it will have broken another one ofAvatar’s records, securing the highest fourth weekend record, which currently stands at $50.3 million.Avatarplayed in theaters for a whopping 46 weeks, 34 weeks in its standard release and 12 weeks in its special edition run. It still holds the records for the highest fourth weekend all the way through the highest 12th weekend.
With the impending release in China, it could be only a matter of time beforeStar Wars: The Force Awakensbecomes the third movie ever to break $2 billion at the worldwide box office, a feat only accomplished byJames Cameron’s blockbustersTitanic($2.1 billion) andAvatar($2.7 billion). It’s possible thatStar Wars: The Force Awakenswill be the first movie ever to crack $3 billion worldwide. If that happens, this one movie would represent 3/4 of Disney’s $4 billion investment when it bought LucasFilm in 2012, with two more sequels and three spinoffs coming in the next four years. Do you think anything can stopStar Wars: The Force Awakensat the box office?
