Warner Bros Pictures, celebrating its biggest international gross of all time in 2002, scored its first triumph of the new year as Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets whipped past the $500m mark at the box office over the weekend. Already the fifth biggest international grosser of all time, the film grossed an estimated $25.9m over the weekend, bringing its total to date to $512m.

It opened in just one territory - Poland - over the weekend, taking $1.46m from 126 prints, making it the second biggest opening of all time in the territory behind the Warner-distributed The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring.

So far the second Harry has taken $104.9m in Japan (after seven weeks of release), $80.4m in the UK (eight weeks), $57.5m in Germany (eight weeks), $48.4m in France (five weeks), $22.2m in Italy (five weeks), $21.9m in Spain (six weeks), $18.1m in Australia (six weeks), $15.7m in Korea (four weeks), $15.6m in Mexico (six weeks) and $10.2m in Taiwan (eight weeks).