DreamWorks Animation’s “Home” blasted off with a $19.2 million flourish at the overseas box off this weekend. That’s good news for the studio and the film, both of which could use a boost ahead of its opening in the U.S. on Friday.
“Divergent the Series: Insurgent” and “Cinderella” were first and second at the foreign box office this weekend, just as they were domestically. The sci-fi sequel brought in $47 million from 77 markets in its overseas debut for Lionsgate, and Disney’s fairy tale update brought in $41.1 million from 46 markets in its second week. Fox’s “Taken 3” opened in China and earned $18 million, raising its foreign total to $224 million.
The best market for the Fox-distributed “Home,” a computer-animated family tale of an Earth invasion by particularly inept aliens, was the U.K. It opened at No. 1 there with $9.3 million, topping the debuts of “The Croods” and “Despicable Me.”
“Home” will be the first release for DreamWorks Animation since it reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $247 million and said it plans to sell its Glendale headquarters in February. A month earlier, DWA announced a massive restructuring plan that included layoffs and brought in new leadership for its film unit.
“Home” is projected to open with $28 million next weekend by BoxOffice.com, and hit $89 million domestically. Those numbers would put a lot of pressure on the film to perform overseas, given its $130 million production budget.