“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” opened atop the box office all over the world, but it proved no match for “The Himalayas” in South Korea, where the homegrown survival tale snagged the No. 1 spot on Friday.
Based on a true story, “The Himalayas” made $1.6 million on Friday, while “The Force Awakens” came in second with $1.3 million. Friday was the opening day for both films.
Of course, the newest “Star Wars” installment is not hurting for box office returns. The J.J. Abrams-directed space epic has taken in $129 million from abroad since it began rolling out Wednesday, distributor Disney reported on Saturday.
That puts it within striking distance of the international opening weekend record of $316.1 million and the record for a worldwide — that is foreign and domestic grosses combined — opening weekend of $524.9 million, both held by “Jurassic World.” “The Force Awakens” brought in a record $120 million-plus in its first day at the North American box office, so its worldwide or global total is roughly $250 million.
It posted the biggest opening day ever in both the U.K., and Germany, the top two foreign markets, where it brought in $24.7 million and $12.7 million respectively. France was next with $11.1 million, followed by Australia with $10.4 million.
“The Force Awakens” opened this weekend in virtually every major market except China, where it will debut on Jan. 9, and Greece and India, where it will roll out next Thursday.
“The Himalayas” opened in Los Angeles on Friday, with a wide release scheduled for Jan. 1.