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Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End remains top of US box office

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Story by Jack Foley

PIRATES of the Caribbean: At World’s End took the top spot at the American box office for a second weekend, selling $43.2 million (£21.8 million) worth of tickets in the three days since June 1.

But while the impressive figures bring its 10-day haul to $216.5 million, it still falls behind the $258 million made by its predecessor, Dead Man’s Chest after the same time last year.

Globally, the film has smashed heaps of records. The film had record-breaking openings (figures are from opening Thursday through to Sunday) in Korea ($18.4 million), Japan ($15.9 million; US Productions only), Russia ($13.7 million), Spain ($11.6 million), Taiwan ($4.5 million) and Netherlands ($2.8 million).

It also set new Walt Disney Studio records in the UK ($26.6 million), France ($17.7 million), Germany ($16.8 million) and Australia ($9.9 million).

And returning to the UK, further records were smashed as At World’s End enjoyed the biggest opening weekend of the year with a weekend total of £13.4m (including previews).

The Bank Holiday Monday ensured a final booty for the long holiday weekend of £17.3m.

Commenting on the international tally, Mark Zoradi, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Marketing and Distribution, said: “We knew that audiences all over the world were excited to see Johnny Depp and the rest of the fantastic Pirates cast in this latest adventure, but this record-setting response at the global box office has been nothing short of incredible.

“Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End now has the distinction of having the biggest opening in movie history, and we’re extremely proud of that achievement.

“Credit goes to the multitude of talent both in front of and behind the camera. Jerry Bruckheimer, Gore Verbinski and their exceptional teams as well as the creative minds of writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio have proven to be the perfect recipe for success.”

US box office gets Knocked Up…

Elsewhere at the US box office, acclaimed pregnancy comedy Knocked Up opened with an impressive $29.3 million, equivalent to its production budget and some $8 million higher than anticipated.

The film stars Katherine Heigl (of Grey’s Anatomy) as an entertainment journalist who is forced to put her career on hold after falling pregnant after a drunken one-night-stand with a slacker (played by Seth Rogen).

But DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.‘s Shrek the Third fell one place to number three with $26.7 million, taking its three-week total to $254.6 million.

New Kevin Costner thriller Mr Brooks, in which he plays a serial killer, debuted fourth with $10 million and Spider-Man 3 fell to fifth with $7.5 million.

However, the successful superhero franchise has now amassed $318.3 million after five weeks, while its worldwide total stands at a massive $844 million, easily surpassing the $821 million haul of 2002’s Spider-Man, the previous record-holder in the franchise.

Find out more about Knocked Up