Universal Pictures International reported on Wednesday (26) that Working Title’s musical has reached an estimated $23.4m following record-breaking launches and previews in seven territories.

Combined with $18.1m from the Dec 25 North American launch, the early worldwide total stands at $41.5m.  

Les Misérables scored Universal’s biggest debut in history in South Korea with $8.6m for the weekend. The release set a new mark in the territory for a musical and set career highs for Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe. The seven-day total including previews is $13.2m. 

The film ranked as the top Hollywood release in Japan, where it took $4.5m over the weekend and $7.3m over five days.

Three days of previews in Australia generated $1.3m. Les Misérables opened officially on Wednesday and early results indicated it was on course to deliver record results.

Spain generated the second biggest Dec 25 launch with $850,000, while Hong Kong produced $194,000 to set the record for the biggest musical and Russell Crowe opening days of all time. The total including previews rises to $536,000.

The musical opened well on Dec 25 in Singapore and Malaysia with grosses of $186,000 and $41,000, respectively. 

Topics