'Furious 7' Breaks Record with $147 Million Opening Weekend Debut
Furious 7 raced to the top of the domestic box office, picking up a massive $147 million in its opening weekend, breaking an April record in the process.
That opening number established a new high-water mark for the month of April, blowing past the $95 million debut of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, as well as marks for the highest grossing kick-off for any film in the Fast and Furious franchise.
A reason behind its success may lay behind sentimental factors after the death of Paul Walker with audiences flocking to see his last ever performance. The actor died in a 2013 car crash at the age of 40, and his work on the film was completed by using digital technology and a series of stand-ins.
This number will also be a relief for Universal Pictures who spared no expense in bringing the latest chapter in the fast cars and gravity-defying-stunts series to the big screen, shelling out $190 million on the production. It's expected that Furious 7 will probably stay atop of the box office standings for a few more weeks as the month of April is lean on blockbuster fare, and Furious 7 won’t get serious competition until Avengers: Age of Ultron debuts on the 1st May.
In second place was DreamWorks Animation's Home which fell 48 percent to $27 million. That drop is steeper than DreamWorks' previous releases Monsters Vs. Aliens, which dropped 45 percent in its second week, and is far worse than The Croods, which dropped 39 percent. Through 10 days, Home has earned $95.6 million.
Third place went to Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart's, Get Hard, with $13.1 million. That's a drop by 61 percent from its opening weekend, which is a terrible fall for a comedy, especially for a Ferrell comedy. Every movie was expected to have some drop in audience numbers with the anticipated release of Furious 7, but that is a big hit for any movie. Get Hard has so far earned $57.2 million in total, and is on track to finish its run in theatres below the $100 million marker.
In other news, Fifty Shades of Grey crossed the $400 million mark overseas this past weekend. The film adaptation achieved the feat at the foreign box office on Friday, and is still in the top 20 at the U.S. box office. The film’s other box office records include the title of highest-grossing Valentine’s Day release of all time and Universal’s biggest R-rated movie.
top 10 U.S. Weekend box office charts
1. Furious 7 - $147 million
2. Home - $27 million
3. Get Hard - $13.1 million
4. Cinderella - $10.1 milion
5. Insurgent - $10.1 million
6. It Follows - $2.5 million
7. Woman in Gold - $2 million
8. Kingsman: The Secret Service - $1.8 million
9. Do You Believe? - $1.5 million
10. The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel - $1 million
