The kick-ass heroes and heroines of George Miller’s actioner dominated the global box-office last weekend although they were beaten by a bunch of a capella singers in several key markets.
Mad Max: Fury Road hauled in $US64 million on nearly 17,000 screens in 68 markets- ranking at No. 1 in 40- plus $45.4 million in the US, for a worldwide total of $109.4 million.
“It performed especially well in action-loving bases and is expected to have long legs,” Deadline.com reported.
In Australia, the Village Roadshow Pictures/Warner Bros. co-production rang up nearly $6.2 million on 542 screens.
Among other impressive debuts in US dollars were France’s $6.8 million, Korea’s $6.6 million and Russia’s $6 million.
Universal’s musical comedy Pitch Perfect 2 grabbed the top spot in the US, whistling up $69.2 million, way more than most pundits had predicted, outpaced the Tom Hardy-Charlize Theron starrer in the UK and Germany.
The Barden Bellas saga directed by Elizabeth Banks grossed $27.1 million in 29 territories to bring its overseas total to $38.1 million. The worldwide tally is $107.5 million so it will soon eclipse the 2012 original’s lifetime haul of $115.3 million.
The actioner took $6.7 million, trailing PP2’s $8 million, in the UK plus $2.8 million in Germany, $2.1 million in Brazil and about $1.2 million apiece in Spain and Italy.
In the US, 70% of the Fury Road audience was male and 63% was aged 25-plus. Hitfix rated the debut as solid considering its reported budget of $220 million, observing, “The universal critical acclaim may keep it in theatres long enough to make the two-year production process worth it for all involved.
“Miller's epic earned an 89 on Metacritic (thanks to just one mixed review) and a fantastic 98% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes."
Rope of Silicon’s Brad Bravet mused, “How this one isn't attracting more 18+ moviegoers is beyond me, but so be it, they're missing out on the best action film to hit theatres in their lifetime.”