‘Force Awakens’ soars with $1B on record weekend at theaters

Author: the associated press
Published: Updated:
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / MGN

LOS ANGELES (AP) – “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” soared to a galactic $1 billion in ticket sales over a record-breaking weekend at the Christmas box office.

The J.J. Abrams-directed installment of the beloved space saga scored the best second weekend of any film, with $149 million, according to studio figures released Monday. That tremendous take boosted holiday box-office totals to new heights: $295.5 million, which bests the $269.8 million record “Avatar” helped set in 2009.

“The Force Awakens” has blasted through domestic and international records since its release two weeks ago. The film has yet to open in the world’s second-biggest movie market, China, which it will do Jan. 9.

The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Monday by Rentrak:

1. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Disney, $149,202,860, 4,134 locations, $36,092 average, $540,058,914, 2 weeks.

2. “Daddy’s Home,” Paramount, $38,740,203, 3,271 locations, $11,844 average, $38,740,203, 1 week.

3. “Joy,” 20th Century Fox, $17,015,168, 2,896 locations, $5,875 average, $17,015,168, 1 week.

4. “Sisters,” Universal, $14,189,455, 2,962 locations, $4,790 average, $37,455,995, 2 weeks.

5. “Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip,” 20th Century Fox, $13,143,329, 3,705 locations, $3,547 average, $39,848,982, 2 weeks.

6. “The Big Short,” Paramount, $10,531,026, 1,585 locations, $6,644 average, $16,022,474, 3 weeks.

7. “Concussion,” Sony, $10,500,000, 2,841 locations, $3,696 average, $10,500,000, 1 week.

8. “Point Break,” Warner Bros., $9,805,000, 2,910 locations, $3,369 average, $9,805,000, 1 week.

9. “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2,” Lionsgate, $5,277,828, 1,813 locations, $2,911 average, $264,540,685, 6 weeks.

10. “The Hateful Eight,” The Weinstein Company, $4,610,676, 100 locations, $46,107 average, $4,610,676, 1 week.

11. “Creed,” Warner Bros., $4,425,000, 1,518 locations, $2,915 average, $96,142,000, 5 weeks.

12. “The Good Dinosaur,” Disney, $3,783,746, 2,134 locations, $1,773 average, $105,350,933, 5 weeks.

13. “Krampus,” Universal, $2,189,595, 1,168 locations, $1,875 average, $40,458,690, 4 weeks.

14. “The Danish Girl,” Focus Features, $1,536,275, 440 locations, $3,492 average, $3,236,367, 5 weeks.

15. “Bajirao Mastani,” Eros Entertainment, $1,331,388, 304 locations, $4,380 average, $4,300,677, 2 weeks.

16. “Carol,” The Weinstein Company, $1,093,571, 180 locations, $6,075 average, $2,877,882, 6 weeks.

17. “Spotlight,” Open Road, $1,083,976, 480 locations, $2,258 average, $24,899,059, 8 weeks.

18. “Brooklyn,” Fox Searchlight, $1,070,674, 300 locations, $3,569 average, $18,407,589, 8 weeks.

19. “In The Heart Of The Sea,” Warner Bros., $1,000,000, 685 locations, $1,460 average, $22,340,000, 3 weeks.

20. “Dilwale,” UTV Communications, $915,795, 227 locations, $4,034 average, $3,962,523, 2 weeks.

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