Box Office: 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Zooms To Huge $32M Opening Day In China

Star Wars: The Force Awakens has earned an estimated solid $32.1 million in its first day of play in China, with final figures going as high as $33m for its opening Saturday. For reference, that's one of the biggest single-day grosses of all time in what is now the second biggest movie-going marketplace. It is just ahead of the $27m opening day of Paramount/ Viacom Inc.'s Terminator: Genisys and the $30m opening day of Paramount's Transformers: Age of Extinction. It is, as of this writing, behind merely the $33.9m opening day of Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron, and the $63m opening day of Universal/ Comcast Corp.'s Furious 7. Of course, it's possible that the final numbers may bump it above that Avengers 2 number (and as of 9:30am Disney is guestimating a $33m opening day), but that's an if/when conversation for tomorrow. Obviously the next Star Wars film needs to be called Star Wars: The Age Of The Furious Jedi. Or they could just call it Star Wars: Monster Hunt 2.

For further reference, Jurassic World earned $17.7m on its opening day towards an eventual $228m cume. Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation earned $18m on its first day, a record for a 2D release, and eventually earned $136m. Spectre snagged a $15m opening day late last year for an eventual $83m cume. And, of course, the sky-high Terminator Genisys opening day figure led to a massively front-loaded $112m cume in China.  Like Terminator, The Force Awakens opens after an extended blackout period on Hollywood exports, which may mean that the figure is somewhat inflated in terms of long term prospects.

But even if it plays like Terminator Genisys, it still gets to $132m, or about what Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation pulled in last year off an $18m opening day. For reference, Transformers: Age of Extinction earned a second-best $320 million cume in China while Avengers: Age of Ultron earned $240m. Furious 7 holds the record for a US import, with a $390m gross in China. Opening weekend comparisons are tricky because films tend to open on any old day of the calendar. But this opening day is especially impressive that the Star Wars franchise is not remotely as much of a cultural item in China (or really much of the world) as it is in America. Walt Disney has a big interest in making sure the Chinese moviegoers get addicted to Star Wars as well.

Their marketing antics have included sending storm troopers to the Great Wall of China for a photo op back in October, making a music video called "The Force Inside" with Lu Han, a performer sometimes called "the Justin Bieber of China," and snagging a deal to allow all six prior Star Wars films to be streamed in China. For the record, Disney isn't expecting China to go nutso for Star Wars to record-levels anymore than Freestyle is expecting to break box office records with their domestic release of Monster Hunt later this month (if you can't tell, I'm really looking forward to that one). That's an extreme example, but you get the idea.

But a successful introduction will ensnare older fans and new fans for the next "episode" or two, which is the long-term goal. So no, The Force Awakens shouldn't be expected to break any records in China just yet, but this initial installment is about establishing brand awareness and hopefully audience approval. As if it needs to be said, we shall watch this one's trajectory with great interest.