“F9,” the ninth film in the “Fast & Furious” saga, on Wednesday has officially grossed over $700 million worldwide. It’s not only by far a pandemic record for an American film, but it’s also the first MPA film to cross that threshold since 2019.
As of Wednesday’s box office, “F9” has made $172.6 million domestically and $528 million internationally, pushing it over the $700 million mark. The last film to make that much? “Jumanji: The Next Level,” which opened in December 2019.
“F9” in particular had a record-breaking May opening in China, crossing $200 million there and becoming the only Hollywood film to cross that mark in China since Universal released the “Fast & Furious” spinoff “Hobbs & Shaw.” Only 11 Hollywood films in the last five years, including three in the “Fast” franchise, have performed as strongly.
“F9” has also narrowly beaten out the Chinese blockbuster “Detective Chinatown 3,” which has made $685 million worldwide and opened to a phenomenal $398 million in China alone.
On the global box office stage, it also lags behind the Chinese comedy “Hi, Mom.” That movie became the second-highest grossing box office hit in China ever, behind only “Wolf Warrior 2,” and it has since made $822 million worldwide. But neither film has received a domestic release.
“F9” was the first major blockbuster from Universal released under a new theatrical window agreement with AMC and Cinemark guaranteeing 17 days of theatrical exclusivity for films and 31 days for any film that opens to over $50 million in North America. At CinemaCon this week, “F9” has been touted by leading exhibitors and theater representatives as an example of the importance of putting films exclusively in theaters first instead of the day-and-date experiments that many studios have attempted during the pandemic.
“F9” is directed by Justin Lin and stars Vin Diesel alongside the franchise’s newcomer John Cena. It first opened in American theaters on June 25 from Universal.
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