Star Wars: The Force Awakens has shattered any competition with a stellar performance after its first screenings in New Zealand, generating a provisional opening weekend total of $4.5 million.
The seventh film in the series commanded pre-Christmas Star Wars fandom across the country, performing 55 percent better than the previous record held by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.
The film also came out on top for other records including largest opening day, four-day opening, and seven-day opening for any picture.
It made the largest individual day for any picture, and four out of six of the highest grossing days, with Avengers still coming in at third place, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 coming in at fifth place.
Original heroes Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) are back to continue the plot from The Return of the Jedi, the last episode of the original trilogy.
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