'Jurassic World' had a record breaking opening weekend and claimed $511 million worldwide

Dinosaurs rule the earth again after 'Jurassic World' debuted the second biggest opening in history


Entertainment Desk June 15, 2015
Dinosaurs rule the earth again after Jurassic World debuted the second biggest opening in history. PHOTO: MOVIEPILOT

The fourth installment of the Hollywood series, Jurassic World, was top choice in the 66 countries where it was released, and has become the first film to earn over $500 million its opening weekend, reported DNA. 

Universal's Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard starrer flick had the second highest grossing opening weekend in the US, 204.6 million, coming next to Marvel's 'The Avengers' at the first place with 207.4 million in 2012.

Read: Irrfan styles himself for his role in 'Jurassic World' 

That commanding number, the second biggest opening in history, all be ensures that those pesky geneticists will keep futzing around with Triceratops DNA for several more installments and park-goers will continue to serve as prehistoric reptile kibble.

Universal Pictures and Legendary shelled out USD 150 million to reopen the park, bringing on Sundance sensation Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed) and snagging Chris Pratt to star in the sequel. It has been more than a decade since Jurassic Park III and the absence appears to have spiked interest in the latest film.

The film was co-produced by Steven Spielberg, who directed the first two films in the series, and directed by Colin Trevorrow.

Going into the weekend, it was clear that Jurassic World was shaping up to be a box office colossus, but no one was even close to predicting the scale of the opening. Most projections were in the USD 125 million to USD  135 million range.

Instead, Jurassic World scored the year's biggest bow, just ahead of Avengers: Age of Ultron and its formidable USD 191.3 million opening last May. From there, Jurassic World stomped across the record books, scoring the third biggest opening day ever, with USD 82.8 million and shattering all June high-water marks for opening weekend, biggest opening day and all-time biggest PG-13 launch.

Read: 'Jurassic Park' was a benchmark for Hollywood: Spielberg 

"This is really unprecedented in terms of shattering expectations," said Phil Contrino, vice president and chief analyst at BoxOffice.com. "They rebooted it in just a really smart way. Universal's marketing campaign was exceptional. They just nurtured this thing and the trailers were excellent."

Universal has yet to release its global figures, but they are likely to be gargantuan. The sequel bowed across 66 international territories including such major markets as China, the United Kingdom, Russia, Mexico, and Australia. In North America, Jurassic World unspooled on 4,273 theaters, the widest release in Universal history.

Jurassic World was a juggernaut when it came to premium formats. The sequel did 48 per cent of its domestic opening weekend gross on 3D screens, and set an Imax record with a stateside debut of USD 20.6 million.

"This is a bigger than life movie," said Greg Foster, chairman and president of Imax Entertainment. "It really reminds audiences why we go to the movies. It honors the tradition of these films but updates them for today's technology."

Jurassic World sucked up most of the oxygen, leaving a handful of holdover films to forage for crumbs. In second place, Melissa McCarthy's Spy showed some staying power.

Warner Bros.' San Andreas scored a third place finish, picking up USD 11 million to drive its domestic total to USD 119.3 million. Horror film Insidious: Chapter 3 finished in fourth with USD 7.3 million. The Focus Features has generated USD 37.4 million in two weeks. Pitch Perfect 2 rounded out the top five with a USD 6 million weekend, bringing its domestic haul to USD 170.7 million.

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