Harry Soars, As Third Film In Franchise Sets Opening Records Around The World

(June 7, 2004 – Burbank, CA) – Moviegoers are still wild about Harry, as the worldwide opening grosses for Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” demonstrated this week. Both domestic and international opening figures for the third film in the Harry Potter series set box-office records, making its opening the biggest of the Harry Potter series so far, announced Veronika Kwan-Rubinek and Dan Fellman, Presidents of International and Domestic Distribution for Warner Bros. Pictures, respectively. Domestic grosses for the three-day weekend are estimated at $93.678 million, defining “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” as the top-ranked Friday-opening PG movie in motion picture history, (a record previously held by “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” which grossed $90.3 million for its three-day opening weekend). The film opened in 3855 locations domestically, for a per-screen average of $24,303. International cumes are estimated at $113.510 million for a week that included a Monday opening in the UK, reaching 24 overseas territories by the week’s end. It opened on 7,885 screens overseas. “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’s” UK opening yielded a series of records, including the biggest single day ever (Monday, May 31) at $9.2 million US; biggest Friday ever with $5.9 million US; biggest opening three days (Mon/Tues/Wed) with $20.994 million US; and biggest seven-day total, with $43.7 million US. In France, “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” marked the biggest opening ever for a U.S. film (excluding previews), surpassing the second Harry Potter movie by 5% and the first by 23%. In Mexico, home of the film’s director, Alfonso Cuarón, the movie surpassed it predecessor by 36% and overtook the first Harry Potter film’s grosses by 77%, ranking as the second-biggest opening ever. Other territories that opened this week include Germany, which earned $15.2 million US, the sixth-biggest opening ever; and Italy, where grosses surpassed the second installment by 6%, at $6.9 million US. Russia tallied a $2.4 million US opening, 56% above the first Harry Potter film and 48% above the second. Said Kwan-Rubinek, “We are tremendously pleased with the opening of ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.’ The combination of wonderful source material, terrific filmmaking and performances, an outstanding marketing campaign, and a day-and-date opening that has capitalized on opportunities in virtually every market around the world has resulted in record-breaking grosses in many of our territories and an excellent prognosis for the run of the movie." Fellman stated, “This is the biggest opening ever for the third film in a series, which tells us that the strength of this franchise just continues to build. As schools in North America continue to release students for their summer vacations, we expect to benefit additionally from an increase in mid-week box-office.” “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” also opened at 49 IMAX theaters in the DMR format in North America this weekend, setting a record there with $2 million in total grosses. The per-screen average of $40,800 also set records in 35 of the 49 houses. Domestic exit polls showed that 40% of opening-weekend audiences were under 17, and reactions to the film fell strongly in the “excellent” category. Internationally, where the film has received different ratings in different territories, families have flocked to see Harry Potter whether the film had a 6, 9 or 12 rating, with both parents and children expressing enthusiasm for the story in every market. Warner Bros. Pictures presents a Heyday Films / 1492 Pictures production, an Alfonso Cuarón film, “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Robbie Coltrane, Michael Gambon, Richard Griffiths, Gary Oldman, Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, David Thewlis, Emma Thompson and Julie Walters. Directed by Alfonso Cuarón, the film is produced by David Heyman, Chris Columbus and Mark Radcliffe. The screenplay is by Steve Kloves, based on the novel by J.K. Rowling. The executive producers are Michael Barnathan, Callum McDougall and Tanya Seghatchian. The director of photography is Michael Seresin; the production designer is Stuart Craig; the editor is Steven Weisberg, and the music is composed by John Williams. “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company. www.harrypotter.com / AOL Keyword: Harry Potter # # #