After just six days of release in
North America, the new Batman sequel "The Dark Knight" has
grossed more domestically than its predecessor did in its
entire run, distributor Warner Bros. Pictures said on
Wednesday.
The Time Warner Inc-owned studio projected the film would
sell about $17 million worth of tickets on Wednesday, taking
its U.S.-Canadian total to about $221 million. It tallied
$158.4 million of that sum during its first three days, setting
a new opening-weekend record.
In surpassing $200 million on Tuesday, "The Dark Knight"
took five days, breaking the record set in 2006 by "Pirates of
the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," which took eight days to
reach that mark.
By contrast, 2005's "Batman Begins," the first entry in the
revived franchise, finished its four-month run with $205.3
million, according to tracking firm Box Office Mojo.
Both films were directed by English filmmaker Christopher
Nolan, and star Welsh actor Christian Bale as Batman. Interest
in the sequel was stoked by Heath Ledger's edgy turn as the
villainous Joker. It represented the Australian actor's last
completed role before he died of an accidental overdose of
prescription pills in January.
Warner Bros. distribution president Dan Fellman predicted
Thursday sales of about $16 million. And industry observers say
that even if "Dark Knight" were to lose a respectable
two-thirds of its business in its second weekend, it will have
banked close to $350 million after its first 10 days. At that
stage, it will be within striking distance of the worldwide
haul of $372 million for "Batman Begins."
"The Dark Knight" will enter the top-10 for all domestic
releases once it surpasses the $373.6 million tally for 2004's
"Spider-Man 2." The studio is conservatively estimating
domestic sales will eventually exceed $400 million, which would
make "Dark Knight" the first film to break that mark since the
2006 "Pirates of the Caribbean" film.
Even with the Ledger-related buzz and overwhelming critical
acclaim, Warner Bros. evidently took no chances on getting the
word out, according to ratings firm Nielsen Co. It said on
Wednesday that the studio ran nearly twice as many television
commercials for "Dark Knight" (2,401) than it did for "Batman
Begins" (1,287). The nine-week tracking period stopped 12 days
before the launch of both films, Nielsen said.
(Reporting by Dean Goodman; Editing by Steve Gorman)
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