With “Jurassic World” opening strongly on Wednesday, Universal Pictures International’s 2015 box office grosses have hit $2 billion, the fastest that any studio has ever reached this milestone.
Boosted in a big way by “Fast and Furious 7,” as well as “Fifty Shades of Grey” and “Pitch Perfect 2,” UPI overtakes the record set by 20th Century Fox in 2010, which reached $2 billion on June 15 of that year.
This also marks the second time in Universal’s 103-year history that the studio has reached $2 billion at the international box office, besting a previous record climb set on Sept. 17, 2013.
Duncan Clark, president of distribution at UPI, made the announcement.
Three movies were the primary drivers for the Universal record.
Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Dwayne Johnson led the all-star returning cast of “Fast & Furious 7” to more than $1.16 billion at the international box office. Among its many records, “Fast & Furious 7” was the fastest film ever to cross the $1 billion threshold worldwide in only 17 days, the highest-grossing film ever in China ($390.8 million) and the third-highest-grossing film at the international box office ever, behind only “Avatar” and “Titanic.”
“Fifty Shades of Grey” became studio’s highest-grossing “R”-rated film of all time, grossing more than $403 million abroad.
“Pitch Perfect 2,” directed by Elizabeth Banks and starring Rebel Wilson and Anna Kendrick, has grossed $90 million in 46 territories and rolls out in 12 more markets over the next few weeks.
More to come …