'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Premiere Becomes Second-Biggest Movie Opening of All Time
"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" has risen to a massive $220 million for the North American box office alone, making its premiere the second-best opening of all time. Second place is not a bad to start at all, especially considering that the top spot has been kept by "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."
This also marks a new period of box office dominance for the "Star Wars" series, as studio estimates show how the second outing in the current trilogy went on to become the second biggest opening weekend ever, according to Time.
It could be the viewing public's own response to the movie, which has earned lavish praise from critics and reviewers from the start. Review aggregators like Rotten Tomatoes have also recorded a plus 99 percent "Want to See" rating for the movie prior to its public premiere, a rough indicator of how badly "Star Wars" fans have been waiting for "Star Wars: The Last Jedi."
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It's also the fourth film to break the tough $200 million milestone in the U.S., as The Guardian notes. The movie shares this rare distinction with "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" which launched at $249 million, along with "The Avengers" at $207 million and "Jurassic World" at $209 million.
As expected, "Star Wars: The Last Jedi." is doing just as well in the overseas market, too. International ticket sales have reached $230 million by the end of the weekend, according to Disney, which brings its record for the three days since the opening weekend to a huge $450 million.
The movie is currently enjoying a stay at the top of box-office charts in the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan.
Fans and critics are somewhat divided over the plot twists of "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," though, as the movie is currently at a dismal 55 percent Audience Score over at Rotten Tomatoes. Opinions of critics still remain high at an average 93 percent.
