AVENGERS 2 Debuts Internationally to $201.2 Million

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON grossed a record $201.2 million this weekend outside the US.

Tallied from 44 territories, the latest Marvel superhero flick became the highest-grossing movie in each location. This record smashed the $175 million projected by Disney before the opening. It accounted for 55% of the international marketplace, which included key countries such as France, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, and more.

Opening May 1 in the US, the estimated gross is just above $200 million, though it has the distinct potential to surpass the $207.4 million earned by the first AVENGERS film.

"The bar was high, but this is a sign of unbelievable momentum in the marketplace," said Disney distribution chief, Dave Hollis. "It all goes back to the strength of the brand and the incredible work the Marvel team does in telling stories in such a consistent way and creating these worlds."

This lines up with the current state of the global film market, which includes at least 70% of most prominent films' box office numbers, a huge jump from just two decades ago when foreign markets held less than half of ticket sales.

"We are living in rarefied air with 'Avengers' to be even talking about these kind of numbers," said senior media analyst at Rentrak, Paul Dergarabedian. "A weekend like this is why a lot of people think it could be even bigger than the first one."

Marvel Studios presents "Avengers: Age of Ultron," the epic follow-up to the biggest Super Hero movie of all time. When Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth's Mightiest Heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, are put to the ultimate test as the fate of the planet hangs in the balance. As the villainous Ultron emerges, it is up to The Avengers to stop him from enacting his terrible plans, and soon uneasy alliances and unexpected action pave the way for an epic and unique global adventure.

Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron" stars Robert Downey Jr., who returns as Iron Man, along with Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk and Chris Evans as Captain America. Together with Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow and Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, and with the additional support of Don Cheadle as James Rhodes/War Machine, Cobie Smulders as Agent Maria Hill, Stellan Skarsgård as Erik Selvig and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, the team must reassemble to defeat James Spader as Ultron, a terrifying technological villain hell-bent on human extinction. Along the way, they confront two mysterious and powerful newcomers, Pietro Maximoff, played byAaron Taylor-Johnson, and Wanda Maximoff, played by Elizabeth Olsen and meet an old friend in a new form when Paul Bettany becomes Vision.

Written and directed by Joss Whedon and produced by Kevin Feige, p.g.a., Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron" is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series "The Avengers," first published in 1963. Louis D'Esposito, Alan Fine, Victoria Alonso, Jeremy Latcham, Patricia Whitcher, Stan Lee and Jon Favreau serve as executive producers. Get set for an action-packed thrill ride when The Avengers return in Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron" on May 1, 2015.

Source: Variety