‘Justice League’ Tops $300M Overseas; ‘Coco’ Charms China & ‘Thor’ Rocks Near $800M WW – International Box Office

TUESDAY AM UPDATE, WRITETHRU with actuals: The Justice League superheroes crossed $300M at the international box office this weekend, rising to $311M after two frames. This was off a $71.5M session that was down 61% from open.

Warner Bros/DC’s JL was playing on 32,800 screens in 66 markets and, combined with domestic, has a worldwide total of $481.3M through Sunday. Japan was the only new market this weekend after the film bowed wide in the last frame. It grossed $3.85M there following a non-traditional Thursday debut on 645 screens and topping Wonder Woman by 14%. China‘s haul for the caped guys has meanwhile risen to $85M, coming in No. 2 in the sophomore rush as Coco dominated Middle Kingdom play.

Disney/Pixar’s Coco had already been strumming around Mexico for a couple of weeks, becoming the biggest movie there ever, and this weekend opened in the U.S. as well as in China, Russia and elsewhere.

And quite a China opening it was. Striking a chord with local audiences, Coco posted $18.2M for the weekend there. That’s the 2nd highest launch ever for a Disney and/or Pixar animated title, coming in behind only Zootopia which hopped away on wild legs after its March opening last year. Social is strong with this one, and the themes are resonating. The total weekend was $30.8M in 22 markets for an international cume of $82.3M and a global tally at $155.2M.

Also from Disney, the Thor: Ragnarok gang isn’t quitting. The son of Odin and pals this weekend crossed $500M at the overseas box office and passed Guardians Of The Galaxy to become the No. 7 global release ever for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The weekend was worth $11.7M in 56 markets for an offshore cume of $513.8M and a global tally of $791.5M.

Elsewhere, Fox’s Murder On The Orient Express made tracks across the $100M international mark and Paramount’s Daddy’s Home 2 came to roost at No. 1 in the UK. Also in the UK, Heyday Films/Studiocanal’s Paddington 2 has crossed $30M and is approaching $40M in just 11 markets so far.

Those three films expand this week, as does Coco, while The Man Who Invented Christmas rings into the UK. Another British story, Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour with its lauded lead turn by Gary Oldman, is opening in China on Friday, ahead of its international rollout elsewhere. For the most part, the next two weekends will see expansions and holds with no major wide releases on deck before Star Wars: The Last Jedi swoops into offshore play on December 13.

Breakdowns and actuals on this weekend’s films have been updated below.

HOLDOVERS/EXPANSIONS
JUSTICE LEAGUE

Supes and the Batman staked out the No. 1 spot at the international box office for the second weekend in a row with $71.5M, dropping 61% from open and adding Japan to the mix. The offshore cume is $311M in 66 markets and $482.9M worldwide.

In Japan, JL opened on a non-traditional Thursday to score $3.85M on 645 screens. That’s 14% ahead of Wonder Woman and, per WB, 7% over Thor: Ragnarok (which bowed on a Friday). It’s equal to Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice from last year.

In holds, China added $15.8M in the sophomore session, landing at No. 2 as Coco swept up Middle Kingdom sentiment. The cume there is $85M. Outside China, Brazil was the top play again with an added $5.4M for $24.8M to date after a record-breaking start last frame.

Mexico has tallied $18.1M, followed by the UK with $16.7M and France (with a 2nd No. 1) at $10M to date. Overall, the top markets are China, Brazil, Mexico, the UK and Korea ($12M cume) where new local title The Swindlers dominated at what local reporting has as a $12.4M start.

Of note, JL has bested the lifetime gross of Wonder Woman in Russia and Italy with $9.5M and $6.2M, respectively.

IMAX play was worth another $8.5M worldwide for $38.1M to date.

COCO

Disney made the savvy move to release this Pixar charmer first in Mexico tied to the Dia de los Muertos holiday and has been cleaning up ever since. It’s already the biggest movie ever in that market and has crossed the 1B peso mark, adding $2.2M to tally up $53.4M so far. This weekend saw new releases in China and Russia, notably, as well as the domestic No. 1 start.

China is looking very sweet on Coco with a debut weekend that is the 2nd biggest for a Disney animated movie at $18.2M. That’s a notch below Zootopia which bunny hopped to over $235M last year. Local reviews site Douban has Coco at a 9.4 score, better than Zootopia, and the movie is resonating with its themes of love, leaving and the world of the dead. A local source tells me that auds have been very emotional over the pic, and that the local marketing team stuffed some theaters with tissues in anticipation. Social is loving this movie in a market where it’s not always been a toy story for Pixar.

Coco’s overall weekend was $30.8M in 22 material markets for an international cume of $82.3M and a global gross of $155.2M so far. The movie also opened at No. 1 in Russia with $3.1M over three days, 9% above Wreck-It-Ralph and 1% bigger than Big Hero 6. Across Europe, Coco strummed into a handful of smaller markets with Poland tops at $900K, besting the beginnings of Moana, Finding Dory and Inside Out.

Next weekend sees openings in France, Germany and Spain along with Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Israel, Thailand, Panama and Peru. Rollout then continues through January before Coco gets the plum Frozen slot in Japan this coming March.

THOR: RAGNAROK

Keeping the Led out, the hammer-wielder crossed $500M internationally and is close to nailing $800M global as play continued with $11.7M in weekend 5 overseas. The total is now $513.8M offshore and $791.5M worldwide. With this session, Thor 3 has passed Disney/Marvel stablemate Guardians Of The Galaxy to become the No. 7 release ever globally for the MCU.

Holds were solid in such markets as the Netherlands (-27%), Belgium (-33%), Switzerland (-33%), Israel (-35%), Sweden (-37%), France (-41%), Singapore (-41%), New Zealand (-42%), Australia (-43%), Mexico (-43%) and Korea (-44%).

As a region, Europe’s box office is now $152M, surpassing the lifetime totals of benchmark titles such as Doctor Strange, Captain America: The Winter Solider, Spider-Man Homecoming and Thor: The Dark World. Across Central and Eastern Europe, Thor: Ragnarok is now the highest grossing superhero movie of all time.

Top 5 markets are: China ($110.4M), the UK ($38.6M), Korea ($34.3M), Brazil ($29.2M) and Australia ($24M).

MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

Fox’s big engine that could has topped the $100M mark internationally, steaming to $122.9M through this weekend off of a $17.5M haul in the frame. Spain was the top new station stop for the Kenneth Branagh-helmed mystery with $2.6M at No. 1. The debut was 70% bigger than comp Gone Girl. The UK was the best hold at $1.8M for a $26.6M cume to date. Germany followed and has collected $7.9M to date.

Overall, Murder is outpacing The Great Gatsby (+41%) and Gone Girl (+79%) in the same bucket of markets and at current exchange rates. Next weekend adds nine new hubs including Brazil, Italy, and Korea.

DADDY’S HOME 2

A Friday night stop on Graham Norton’s couch fed into Daddy’s Home 2’s UK opening where it landed No. 1 with $6.3M on 505 screens. That’s 84% over the original film which went into a holiday corridor. In total, the sequel added $13.8M this session in 24 markets for a $15M cume. The weekend gross on a like for like basis including paid previews is 23% above Daddy’s Home.

In Australia, DH2 bowed to No. 2 with $3.3M at 269 locations and 20% below Daddy’s Home. Russia, where the movie opened to No. 5, was in keeping with the first movie at $1.4M across 1,034 sites. Brazil took $1M in third place to bow 4% below DH the first which opened during school holidays. The next majors on the Paramount title are Mexico and Spain on December 1.

HAPPY DEATH DAY

Universal and Blumhouse’s horror story had already crossed $100M worldwide this week, and reaped another $4.6M through Sunday in 48 territories for an international total of $49.8M. Combined with North America, the global total is $105.4M. Hong Kong saw a strong No. 2 open with $234K at 34 dates. Korea keeps repeating with a hold that is $1.3M for a $9.5M cume to date

A BAD MOMS CHRISTMAS

Putting $4M more in the stockings, STX’s sequel now has an international cume of $92.6M. There were 10 new markets this session including the UAE where $232K at 110 locations was 13% over the original. In the UK, the 4th weekend has lifted the tally to $8.9M, on par with the first Bad Moms. Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland have cumed $8.4M, which is 21% behind Bad Moms, but 105% ahead of Horrible Bosses 2, 18% ahead of Neighbors 2 and 75% ahead of Office Christmas Party.

In other running tallies, Australia/New Zealand are at $3M; Eastern Europe has $3M so far (53% higher than Bad Moms); and Scandinavia has downed $2.8M. Further rollout begins this week in France and Benelux, followed by Italy, Russia, Spain and Latin America in early December.

MISC UPDATED CUMES/NOTABLES
Flatliners (SNY): $3.1M intl weekend (18 markets); $20.5M intl cume
The Snowman (UNI): $2M intl weekend (33 markets); $32.8M intl cume
IT (WB): $1.3M intl weekend (Japan only); $364.6M intl cume

The Mountain Between Us (FOX): $1M intl weekend (18 markets); $25.8M intl cume
Victoria And Abdul (UNI): $609K intl weekend (33 markets); $40.8M intl cume

John Woo’s Manhunt, a return to the director’s hard-boiled action days of yore, debuted in China this weekend taking 3rd position behind Coco and Justice League with $11M. Per comScore, the movie that world premiered in Venice grossed $11.6M in five markets.

In Korea, new local title The Swindlers was No. 1 with local reports putting it at $12.4M. The crime thriller is directed by Jang Chang-won.

Paddington 2 has now grossed $39.65M in 11 markets with several offshore openings still to come; the U.S. goes January 12. The total through Sunday in the UK is $30.6M.

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