‘Jumanji’ Keeps Offshore Crown, Nears $400M; ‘Last Jedi’ Waltzes Past ‘Beauty’ Worldwide – International Box Office

UPDATE: Major holdovers and expansions, combined with sprinklings of key awards contender releases kept offshore turnstiles clicking to varied offerings this weekend. Leading the action, Sony’s Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle rocked up with another $81M including a $40M start in China, and as it approaches $400M at the international box office. The Jake Kasdan-helmed adventure was No. 1 in 31 offshore markets with strong holds across the board and has swung to $383M overseas and $667M worldwide.

In its 5th weekend, Star Wars: The Last Jedi added $19M to bring the offshore total to $673.4M and the worldwide bounty to $1,264.9M. The latter lifts Episode VIII above Beauty And The Beast to become the No. 10 global release of all time.

Coco meanwhile struck a chord in Korea with the third-best start ever for a Disney or Pixar animated title. The full weekend in 35 material markets was $19M to tie stablemate The Last Jedi in the frame. The international Coco cume is now $425.2M with global at $621.7M. The UK and Japan are still on deck.

In notable market debuts for the major awards contenders, Universal’s release of Working Title/Focus’ Darkest Hour brought Gary Oldman’s Winston Churchill to the UK with a No. 1 start to top comps at $5.85M. The weekend in 22 markets was $10.6M including a terrific start in Brazil. This is following Oldman’s Golden Globe win last weekend and Tuesday’s nine BAFTA nominations.

The BAFTA nominations leader, Fox Searchlight’s The Shape Of Water, took a bow in filmmaker Guillermo del Toro’s home country Mexico this weekend — a few days after he took the Golden Globe for Best Director. It well outperformed comps at about 61.3M pesos ($3.25M) and as exhibitors ask for authorization to add more shows. It was by far the No. 1 movie this weekend and more than doubled the No. 2 picture in the market. Del Toro said today, “It is particularly moving to see the response that The Shape Of Water is having this week, not only for the sustained box office in the U.S. but for the beautiful outpouring of love in Mexico. The fact that audiences in my country have embraced it, means the world to me.”

Also from busy Searchlight, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, the Golden Globes’ Best Motion Picture, Drama, and a nine-time BAFTA nominee, has crossed $10M after opening in just Australia last frame (and it increased there by 6% this time around). Top bows this session included the UK, Spain and Italy (with the highest screen average in the market for the pic that debuted at the Venice Film Festival).

Elsewhere, big Fox’s The Greatest Showman has danced across the $100M international box office mark, as has Lionsgate’s Wonder. Sony/Blumhouse’s Insidious: The Last Key has stayed on pace to unlock the biggest gross of the franchise. As it begins soft rollout overseas, Studiocanal’s The Commuter is having a nice start to its journey, coming in above key comps with a comScore-reported $6.26M in 13 markets (full numbers will be available on Monday).

Breakdowns on the films above and more have been updated below.

NEW
THE SHAPE OF WATER

Guillermo del Toro’s lyrical period fairy tale kicked off its official international box office run in the filmmaker’s home country, Mexico, this weekend, taking $3.25M on 1,342 screens. This by far tops his previous debuts, save Pacific Rim (which is not a direct comp) and was good for the No. 1 slot, more than doubling the No. 2 movie.

Shape began its career at the Venice Film Festival in August, with crowds and critics swooning, and winning the top prize Golden Lion. Following Venice, Fox Searchlight took the Sally Hawkins-starrer to multiple festivals including Morelia in October. There, del Toro engaged with audiences, taking selfies, signing autographs and talking movies with folks who stopped him on the street. He also gave a masterclass in Teatro Ocampo — and then another one for all those who couldn’t get in (that’s similar to something he did at Telluride, inviting folks to an outdoor Q&A session at 7:30 AM the morning after an 11PM screening the night before).

The film has been winning prizes all along its travels, last week taking the Golden Globe for Best Director and for Alexandre Desplat’s score; and nabbing wins in those same categories as well as Best Picture and Best Production Design at the Critics’ Choice Awards. On Tuesday, it earned a leading 12 BAFTA nominations.

In Mexico, Searchlight is adding shows wherever possible as theater managers clamor. Del Toro today said he was moved by the “beautiful outpouring of love in Mexico. The fact that audiences in my country have embraced it, means the world to me.”

To put the Mexico opening in context, the film opened to 61.3M pesos versus Crimson Peak (30.5M), Pacific Rim (71M), Pan’s Labyrinth (7.7M) and The Devil’s Backbone (7.9M). Next weekend, 11 more markets come online including Australia and Russia.

HOLDOVERS/EXPANSIONS
JUMANJI: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE

As it continues to roar abroad, Sony’s update on the 1995 classic led the international box office for the 3rd straight frame. This time, it picked up $81M on over 32K screens and was No. 1 in 31 markets. Of that, $40M came from China, dethroning the past few sessions’ winner, local pic The Ex File 3. The start was 39% above last weekend’s new entry, Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The overseas cume on the Dwayne Johnson-starrer is now $383M with worldwide at $667M.

Asia’s regional cume is $113.1M. Some of that muscle is coming from emerging markets including the Philippines which this weekend launched to No. 1 at $2.3M. Malaysia also deserves a shout-out with a cume of $13.4M to make it the No. 2 movie ever in the market.

Latin America’s regional cume is $57M. Peru opened at No. 1 grossing $1.1M while Brazil retained the top spot in its sophomore frame. The cume there is now $13.6M after dropping just 29%. Colombia has held No. 1 for three weeks with $6M to date.

And in Europe, the regional cume is $159.2M. The UK dipped 36% in its 4th frame for a cume of $40.4M. Jumanji dominated Australia for a 3rd consecutive weekend with a 26% drop for $3.7M and a $27.8M running total.

The Top 5 markets on the Jake Kasdan-helmed adventure are the UK ($40.4M), China ($40M), Australia ($27.8M), Russia ($23.1M) and France ($21.9M). Japan is still to come in April.

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI

With its 5th weekend counted, Star Wars: The Last Jedi has become the No. 10 movie ever at the all-time worldwide box office with $1,264.9M. That moves it into the position previously held by Disney’s own Beauty And The Beast (it needs another roughly $12M to beat Frozen). The Rian Johnson-helmed Episode VIII also has also become the No. 1 movie released in 2017 on a global basis. This session was worth $19M in 52 material markets to lift the international cume to $673.4M.

In Europe, Jedi is now the No. 8 movie ever, passing The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Germany and Switzerland both held the No. 1 position for the 5th weekend in a row. Also keeping grips on No. 1 after five weeks is Japan where the cume is $58.1M.

As expected, the needle didn’t move too much in China where Jedi got squished by local competition and an overall lack of sentiment that we see elsewhere. The total there is now $38.8M after an estimated $2.4M frame, down about 92%. (See here and here for more about what happened in the Middle Kingdom.)

China is the No. 6 market for the film overseas. The Top 5 are the UK ($107.3M), Germany ($77.6M), France ($60.1M), Japan ($58.1M) and Australia ($42.2M).

For those keeping score, The Last Jedi is now running 36% behind The Force Awakens internationally, and 28% above Rogue One.

COCO

Korean audiences chimed in on Coco this session, contributing to a $19M frame in an overall 35 material markets. The offshore cume is now $425.2M for $621.7M globally. Korea took the lead in openings with $5.8M ($6.7M including previews). The start was good for No. 1 and is the 3rd best ever bow for a Pixar or Disney animated film. It came in 143% above Zootopia, 29% over Moana, 15% bigger than Inside Out and 13% ahead of Big Hero 6. Social media response has been strong in the savvy market, boding well for Miguel and family.

Elsewhere in Asia, Coco passed Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales in China to become the 4th biggest Disney release ever. It is also now the top Pixar release ever in Thailand.

In Argentina, Coco came alive at No. 1 with $2.5M for the best Pixar/Disney Animation summer holiday opening ever. It landed 103% ahead of Big Hero 6, 68% ahead of Moana and 6% ahead of Frozen.

Holds are strong in such markets as Spain (-11%), Colombia (-12%), Panama (-13%), Ecuador (-13%), Chile (-19%), Hong Kong (-30%) and Brazil (-32%).

The Top 5 ex-U.S. plays are China ($183M), Mexico ($57.8M), France ($29.9M), Spain ($17.9M) and Italy ($11.8M).

Next weekend, Coco finally gets to the UK. Japan is the final major on March 16.

INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY

The 4th film in this Blumhouse franchise is on track to be the series’ biggest with a current $44.2M cume overseas. The Sony release added $17.7M in 40 markets this session, led by a record-breaking start in the increasingly important Indonesia. There, a $5.2M bow (including previews) was the biggest ever for a horror title. The UK also launched this frame at 39% above the last installment with $2.7M. Notable holdovers on the Adam Robitel-directed scarer include Mexico ($1.3M/$6.4M cume), Germany ($1M/$3.3M) and France ($910K/$3.4M). Upcoming major market releases include Russia, Brazil and Italy this coming week.

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN

Hugh Jackman and the gang drummed up $15.2M in 71 markets this frame to bring the offshore total on the showbiz origins story to just over $100M. There were no major market additions for the musical this session, but holds were very strong. The UK dipped 13% to cume $18.2M to date; Australia was down 16% for $12.6M so far; and Spain fell off by 4% for a $5M running cume. The UK and Australia lead play with Mexico at $9.6M, Korea at $9.1M and Russia at $6.5M and holding onto the No. 3 slot locally. Still to take a bow are France, China and Japan.

FERDINAND

Blue Sky Studios’ gentle-giant bull charged up $13.3M in 70 markets for a $132.1M running offshore total. In Brazil, he started off to $3.6M including previews and in Chile was No. 2 with $489K. Among the top local plays are France ($13.7M), the UK ($11.7M) and Russia ($10.2M). Ferdinand horns in on China next session with Hong Kong and Taiwan positioned for the Spring Festival holidays in mid-February.

DARKEST HOUR

The Joe Wright-helmed World War II drama opened in 16 new markets this weekend for another $10.6M, bringing the offshore cume to $19M in a total 22 so far. A great No. 1 start in the UK was worth $5.85M on 609 screens. That’s better than the debuts of such comps as War Horse, The King’s Speech, The Theory Of Everything, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Imitation Game and The Iron Lady. With awards momentum continuing and nine BAFTA nominations, the Working Title/Focus feature is set up for a strong run.

Elsewhere, Darkest Hour bowed in Brazil with a $673K start that is better than The Iron Lady, The Theory Of Everything and Bridge Of Spies, and in line with Lincoln and Sully. Australia was also a new play. A $1M debut there is on par with Zero Dark Thirty, Lincoln and Theory Of Everything. So was Portugal which launched at No. 2 with $169K on 48 screens.

In France, the second-weekend drop was just 34% for a $2.6M cume to date; Hong Kong fell by just 31% and has grossed $563K. Next session sees 25 markets seek victory, including Korea, Germany, Italy, Russia and Mexico.

PITCH PERFECT 3
In 42 markets, Universal’s threequel now has an offshore cume of $67.7M. The session was worth $8.3M. The Philippines was a new play with an excellent $2.1M opening that is 23% above the sequel. In holds, Australia was tops with a 42% drop and $12.2M to date. The UK leads at $19M after four weekends. Still to come are Hong Kong and Norway this month; further markets come online for the Bellas down the road.

THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING MISSOURI

Coming off multiple Golden Globe wins last Sunday, Martin McDonagh’s darkly comic drama posted $7.7M in 12 markets this session. After starting in Australia last weekend, the overseas cume on the Fox Searchlight title is now $10.1M. The UK was the top play at $3.2M, coming in No. 3 in a busy market and 36% above The Grand Budapest Hotel and 59% above Birdman. Like the latter did in 2014, Three Billboards began its career at the Venice Film Festival and has steamrolled through festival and awards season.

The Frances McDormand-starrer also this weekend debuted at No. 2 in Spain with $1.1M and in Italy scored $1M on 160 screens for the highest per-screen average in the market. In its 2nd weekend in Australia, Three Billboards jumped by 6% to cume $2.9M to date. Next weekend adds 13 hubs including France and Argentina.

WONDER

Lionsgate’s Wonder continues to amaze, passing $100M internationally this weekend. That’s including $5.3M from 61 markets in the session for a $102.3M total to date. Brazil has been a wonder itself on the Julia Roberts-starrer. The market has shelled out $23.6M (76.6M reals) after six weeks and gives Lionsgate its 2nd biggest grosser ever there in local currency, topping The Shack’s 74.7M reals lifetime.

Italy has also taken a shine to young Auggie with a $12.1M gross for Lionsgate’s biggest non-franchise title ever. China welcomes the family next weekend and Germany follows on January 25.

MISC UPDATED CUMES/NOTABLES

Downsizing (PAR): $4.2M intl weekend (25 markets, incl No. 2 start in France); $7.4M intl cume
Molly’s Game (S/A): $3.4M intl weekend; $13.8M intl cume
All The Money In The World (STX/SNY): $2.9M intl weekend (20 markets); $12.7M intl cume
Murder On The Orient Express (FOX): $2.9M intl weekend (24 markets); $241.8M intl cume
Kingsman: The Golden Circle (FOX): $1.7M intl weekena (Japan only/$8.87M cume tops previous pic); $305M intl cume
Father Figures (WB): $1.1M intl weekend (17 markets); $3M intl cume
Perfectos Desconocidos (UNI): $1.1M intl weekend (Spain only – back to No. 1 in 7th frame); $19.8M Spanish cume

NEW LOCAL-LANGUAGE

Universal is continuing its relationship with Carlo Verdone whose Sotto Una Buona Stella the studio released in 2014. It has his latest comedy Benedetta Follia in Italy where it opened at No. 1 this weekend to a strong $4M on 560 screens and with good word of mouth. The story centers on a man who owns a shop that sells religious items and whose wife leaves him after 25 years of supposedly happy marriage — enter a new woman into his life who’s well-schooled in dating apps… This is Verdone’s 26th film as director, writer and star.