HN
China
Matt Reeves‘ Dawn of the Planet of the Apes closed out the summer season in style, opening to a massive $47 million in China and crossing the $600 million mark at the global box office.
Contributing to 20th Century Fox’s stellar summer, the sequel has earned $205.2 million domestically and $408.1 million internationally for a total $613.3 million, well ahead of the $481.8 million earned by Rise of the Planet of the Apes in 2011.
Fox reports that the sequel’s debut in China was one of the best in history for a Western title, save for Iron Man 3, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and Transformers: Age of Extinction. This summer, Age of Extinction earned north of $300 million to become the top-grossing film of all in China (the bad news is that Hollywood’s cut of the Chinese box office is notably less than in the U.S. and other key markets).
Thanks to its China opening, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes won the international weekend race as it zoomed to the top of the global weekend chart, toppling Guardians of the Galaxy from the top spot.
New Line and Warner Bros.’ modestly budgeted tornado disaster film Into the Storm whipped up strong interest in select foreign markets, including opening to No. 1 in South Korea with $5.2 million and dethroning local hits The Pirates and The Admiral: Roaring Currents.
If I Stay, also from New Line and Warner Bros., opened to a solid No. 1 in Russia with $1.2 million. Fox’s R-rated comedy Let’s Be Cops bested that with $1.8 million, while launching in the U.K. to $2.8 million (American comedies are never an easy sell overseas.)
Below are the top 10 films at the global box office for the weekend of Aug. 29 through Aug. 31, according to Rentrak.
1. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (Fox, 30 territories, week 8)
Global weekend: $52 million (total: $613.4 million)
International: $51.2 million ($408.1 million)
Domestic: $825K million ($205.2million)
2. Guardians of the Galaxy (Disney/Marvel, 69 territories, week 5)
Global weekend: $36 million (total: $547.7 million)
International: $19.7 million ($273.1 million)
Domestic: $16.3 million ($274.6 million)
3. Lucy (Universal/EuropaCorp/various, 53 territory, week 6)
Global weekend: $33.9 million (total: $269.4 million)
International: $31.2 million ($151.6 million)
Domestic: $2.7 million ($117.8 million)
4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Paramount/Nickelodeon, 44 territories, week 4)
Global weekend: $24.8 million (total: $274.5 million)
International: $13 million ($112.1 million)
Domestic: $11.8 million ($162.4 million)
5. Into the Storm (Warner Bros./New Line, 52 territories, week 4)
Global weekend: $15.4 million (total: $89.6 million)
International: $12.9 million ($47.7 million)
Domestic: $2.5 million  ($41.9 million)
6. Let’s Be Cops (Fox, 24 territories, week 3)
Global weekend: $14.8 million (total: $67.1 million)
International: $6.6 million ($9.8 million)
Domestic: $8.2 million  ($57.3 million)
7. If I Stay (Warner Bros./New Line, 11 territories, week 2)
Global weekend: $13.9 million (total: $34.4 million)
International: $4.6 million
Domestic: $9.3 million  ($29.8 million)
8. The Expendables 3 (Millennium/Lionsgate/various, 37 territories, week 3)
Global weekend: $12.3 million ($92.1 million)
International: $8.8 million ($59 million)
Domestic: 3.5 million ($33.1 million)
9. How to Train Your Dragon 2 (Fox/DreamWorks Animation, 24 territories, week 9)
Global weekend: $11.6 million (total: $593.7 million)
International: $10.5 million ($420.2 million)
Domestic: $1.1 million  ($173.5 million)
10. Hercules (Paramount/MGM, 30 territories, week 6)
Global weekend: $10.4 million ($174.7 million)
International: $9.8 million ($103.8 million)
Domestic: $500K ($70.9 million)