Alice aims to retain overseas crown as $200m beckons

By Jeremy Kay2010-03-12T02:50:00+00:00

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Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International’s Alice In Wonderland enters its second weekend as favourite to retain the international number one spot following a strong week.

By the end of Thursday Tim Burton’s retelling of Lewis Caroll’s classic fantasy had grossed close to $40m since the weekend to stand at $138.7m and has a shot at crossing $200m by the end of the weekend.

Latest figures put Alice on $21.7m in Russia, $21.6m in the UK, $18.1m in Italy, $12.7m in Australia and $10.4m in Mexico.

There are new launches in Benelux, Finland, India and Ukraine. The distributor will roll out Alice in France on March 24, China on March 26, Spain on April 16, Japan on April 17, and Brazil on April 21.

Battling it out for second place will be Avatar, still a force as it enters its 13^th weekend on $1.886bn through Fox International. Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief stands at $112.7m and should have a good weekend with launches in China and Italy, while Hot Summer Days has grossed $18.8m and My Name Is Khan $31.9m.

Fox launches the German-language title Die Fremde in Germany and Spanish-language film Pajaros De Papel in Spain.

Paramount/PPI’s thriller Shutter Island on $38.2m will also be a strong contender and opens in a further 17 territories through PPI. Highlights are expected to come from Argentina and Hong Kong on March 11 and the UK, Brazil and Mexico the following day.

Horror tale Case 39 on $12.8m arrives in Germany on March 11 while Up In The Air has amassed $73.3m and touches down on the same day in South Korea.

Universal/UPI’s action thriller The Green Zone lands in 15 territories day-and-date with North America and should pose a threat to the number two international slot. The biggest impact is expected to come from Russia, Australia and Singapore on March 11, the UK, Spain and Sweden on March 12, and Taiwan on March 13.

UPI launches the German-language title Die Teufelskicker across German-speaking Europe on March 11 and 12.

Summit International territories open the romantic drama Remember Me day-and-date with North America in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden and Brazil, among others.

Sony Pictures Releasing International’s horror film Legion opens in Italy among others on March 12 and stands at a little over $11.7m. The Men Who Stare At Goats on more than $2.9m opens in France, and Did You Hear About The Morgans? opens in Japan, Taiwan and Argentina this weekend and has grossed more than $49.7m.