Harry Potter sweeps the globe with $104m opening day gross

The grosses announcement was made jointly by Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros, and Veronika Kwan-Rubinek, president of international distribution.

Among the international numbers are a $7.6m (£4.7m) opening day in the UK from 1,305 screens which is the third biggest opening day of all time and the biggest Wednesday on record. The opening day was 35% bigger than Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix.

The film took $4m (€2.9m) in Italy on 923 screens, which is the second biggest opening of all time and 27% bigger than the last Potter.

In Australia, the film grossed $3.4m (A$4.4m) from 485 screens which is the third biggest opening day of all time and 7% ahead of Order Of The Phoenix.

In Brazil, the film grossed $2.1m on 761 screens, 37% up on the last film; in The Netherlands it grossed $1.3m from 215 screens, 30% up on the last film; and in South Korea, it took $1.3m from 502 screens, 37% higher than the last film.

“With many countries yet to open, these already outstanding box office numbers are another testament to the universal appeal of J K Rowling’s stories and the remarkable work of everyone behind the Harry Potter films,” said Kwan-Rubinek in a statement.

More magic will follow in the coming days as the weekend crowds turn out and preliminary figures arrive from the July 16 launches in Germany, Mexico and Russia. Overall, Half-Blood Prince launches in 54 international markets this weekend, which are expected to account for the bulk of the film’s total overseas box office by the time it has completed its run.

Elsewhere rival distributors are keeping a low profile. Fox International’s titan Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs has reached $351m, while the Nia Vardalos comedy My Life In Ruins arrives in Australia and New Zealand on July 16. PPI’s Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen stands at $380.2m.