This Is It Tops the Charts With $101 Million Worldwide
Michael Jackson’s film This Is It has made $101 million in its first five days worldwide, and Sony says it will extend the film’s run. Sony previously announced that if the film performs well, it will extend its release period.
In its first day of release in the United States and Canada, the film made $21.3 million. It has already brought its domestic total to $32.5 million. Sales outside North America were $68.5 million. In Japan it sold $10.4 million, in Germany $6.3 million, in France $5.8 million, and in China $3.2 million. In the UK, the film sold $7.6 million.
Rory Bruer, head of Sony’s distribution division, says: “Michael is loved everywhere on this planet. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Asia or Africa, Australia, Europe, or South America. All the continents love him and his music.”
The film’s run continues until Thanksgiving, one of the busiest times for cinemas in the United States. In other countries, the film’s release will be extended by one to three weeks according to the schedule.
Box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian of Hollywood.com says: “Sony invested $60 million and earned $101 million in five days. It was a profitable deal.”
This analyst says This Is It has a good chance to surpass the box office record of Hannah Montana. The Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus concert film sold $65.3 million in the U.S. last year—though that figure is for the entire run in that country. Hannah Montana is the best-selling music documentary concert film. But right now, Michael Jackson’s worldwide sales have already surpassed Hannah Montana. Hannah Montana is popular with American teenage girls, which is why it had limited release in other countries and managed to sell $5 million—bringing its total to $70 million worldwide.
Michael Jackson’s film is being released in 3,481 North American theaters, which is about five times the number of theaters showing Hannah Montana. Of course, the Montana film was also shown in 3D, which slightly boosted its sales. Teenage girls who are interested in Miley Cyrus thought the weekend was better for going to the cinema, which is why the weekend sales of that film were higher than This Is It. But Sony wants to give older fans of Michael Jackson the chance to find a suitable time to watch This Is It in cinemas according to their weekly schedule by extending the film’s run.
Sony has announced that people over 25 make up 62% of Michael Jackson film audiences.
Roger Freedman also wrote in his news column that this film broke the record for any documentary or concert film. Based on the film’s sales figures, Freedman called it a major success.
Source: eMJey / Showbiz411.com / AP