Ice Age Inspires Global Warming As Box Office Heat Rises Among International Markets Around The World.
After racking up an estimated $116,862,514 million dollars at the U. S. box office since skating
its way into the domestic marketplace just two weeks ago, Twentieth Century Fox's cooler than cool all-digital animated feature ICE AGE, directed by Academy Award winner Chris Wedge, continued to heat up box office cash registers throughout the rest of the world this past Easter holiday weekend.
Following record-breaking openings last weekend in Germany, Australia and Brazil, the film's extraordinary momentum continued this past weekend throughout Europe, Latin America and the Asia/Pacific region, bringing the film's international cume to $56,151,488 million and the worldwide box office tally to a slick $173,000,000 and change.
Making a smashing debut into the South African marketplace in the coveted #1slot, ICE AGE earned a glistening $248,289 from 71 screens including previews, not only taking the crown for the highest opening animated feature film ever but also for the biggest opening weekend in Fox's own South African Film history. It now ranks as the third most massive opening weekend in that territory's history, behind only LORD OF THE RINGS and MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2.
The avalanche continued in Germany where, despite unusually sunny weather that kept more families outside than bundled up inside cozy cinemas, ICE AGE added a hearty $4,890,640 to its coffers from 833 screens for an outstanding cume of $15,357,006 in its second weekend, with Easter Monday figures still snowing in. ICE AGE continued to take the U. K. by storm as well, handily surpassing the re-release of E. T. by pulling in a tidy $2,105,626 from 500 cinemas prior to the final addition of Easter Monday numbers for a sizeable box office tally to date of $8,844,172. Austria amassed an additional $579,781 from its 89 screens for an excellent cume of $1,996,074 after just two weeks in that market. Switzerland bulked up its box office with another $346,035 from 63 houses in that country's German sector, gliding to a handsome $875,768 after only two weeks of play. Norway skied in with a smooth $292,954 from 83 screens in its second weekend, bringing its total box office cume to a frosty $1,022,184. Not to be outdone, Denmark slalomed in with a cool $201,545 from 80 screens as well, rounding out its two week cume to a blustery $797,571. Sleighing in as the final Scandinavian entry, Finland produced another $102,306 from 41 cinemas, bringing its own two week cume to $247,687. Still going strong in Israel, ICE AGE earned an additional $119,159 on 44 screens for a two week box office total of $307,444. Still icey in Iceland, the film has earned a firm $109,199 to date and another $60,676 in Lebanon, where ICE AGE also enjoyed a playful second weekend.
As it moved toward winter Down Under, ICE AGE gripped onto its #1 position with particularly strong mittens, reeling in a hefty $1,557,539 in its second weekend on 313 screens up from 298 cinemas in its opening weekend for a cume to date of $3,178,987 for that territory while Hong Kong also maintained the number one slot for a weekend total of $188,454 on 30 screens and a box office tally of $655,396 after just two weekends of play. Singapore lured another $92,340 from 31 houses for a total cume of $850,201 while Indonesia racked up a tidy $19,048 on 13 screens for a box office take of $121,190 to date. Taiwan is not scheduled to bow with ICE AGE until June 15 and Japan this coming summer.
Where the last thoughts in that region's mind were of cold winter chill, ICE AGE blew through Latin America with a continued gale force. In its third weekend south of the border, Mexico took in a record-breaking $1,953,838 from 502 screens, making it the #1 film in that market for the third consecutive weekend, the biggest all-time third weekend in Mexican industry history, and the first film in that market to reach a box office cume of $13,000,000 actually, $13,000,902 in only 17 days of play. ICE AGE also retained its #1 spot in Brazil for the second weekend running, with an outstanding $874,702 from 285 cinemas and a box office tally to date of $2,163,031. The film also scaled to great heights in Venezuela where it again finished as #1 in that market, boasting a 29% increase in its second weekend on 45 screens up from 40 for a weekend tally of $350,250 and a cume to date of $714,934. Chile also swooshed in with a chilly $297,200 at 29 cinemas, sustaining its #1 position and bringing its two week total to an outstanding $642,234. Colombia sledded to the head of the pack remaining at #1 in its own second weekend of release, raking in a whistling $289,430 from 80 houses for a cume to date of $1,164,948. ICE AGE was also #1 for the second weekend in Central America, where the film took in an additional $190,629 from 58 screens and has amassed a to date tally of $713,442. Peru also proved itself in weekend two, ranking #1 for the second weekend in a row and pulling in an efficient $178,726 from 38 theatres for a box office cume of $407,170. Bolivia and Ecuador each maintained their #1 spots for the second weekend in a row, accumulating respective box office tallies to date of $70,656 from just six screens and $134,211 from only 10 cinemas, respectively.
ICE AGE is poised to luge its way next into Greece 4/12, Italy 4/24 and Holland 4/25.
ICE AGE follows the trek of an unlikely threesome: a woolly mammoth named Manfred, a lazy Sloth known as Sid and a saber-toothed tiger called Diego who join forces in the wondrous prehistoric world on the verge of the ice age while trying to reunite an abandoned human baby known as Roshan with his family. English voice talent includes Ray Romano as "Manny," John Leguizamo as Sid and Dennis Leary as Diego, who turns out to be far less sinister than he is sensitive.
Twentieth Century Fox International is a unit of Fox Filmed Entertainment, a segment of the Fox Entertainment Group.
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