Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda 4 had a rock ‘em sock ‘em weekend at the international box office, adding $55.3M from 69 markets for a $135M overseas running cume, and $268.2M global (there are several key markets still to release, including France, Australia, the UK and Korea). 

The frame for the fourquel was led by China with $25.7M including last session’s previews. The franchise has historically performed well in that mercurial market, and, along with the continued success of Warner Bros/Legendary’s Dune: Part Two there ($43.9M running China total) it’s good news for a market that has increasingly turned inward. Should hope spring? Let’s wait on that one…

More below on KFP4 and Dune 2 overall. In the meantime, the new opener this weekend was Sony’s Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. The Gil Kenan-directed sequel is on a staggered rollout and grossed $16.4M from its first 25 international markets. With that, it’s tracking 15% ahead of Ghostbusters: Afterlife at current rates. The global debut is $61.6M.

The UK was the top opener at No. 1 with $5.3M, followed by Mexico with $2.7M. Australia launched atop the charts with$2M, and Germany bowed to $1.7M. Spain was a No. 1 start with $1.3M.

Recall that Ghostbusters is always a domestic driven property: Afterlife made more than 63% of its global take in North America. Overseas markets still on deck include Japan, Netherlands, France, Brazil, Italy and Korea.

Turning back to the holdovers, Kung Fu Panda 4 added 13 markets this weekend including China (which, as noted, was in previews last session), Brazil and Netherlands. The film is seeing high shares in evening shows, signaling strong attendance from adults as well as children.

The China debut, a rare clear No. 1 for a Hollywood movie in current times, delivered strong numbers following previews with 28% of shows and 38% of box office on Saturday. The opening result excluding previews is in line with Kung Fu Panda 2 and above Minions 2.

Italy kicked off at No.1 with a dominant 57% market share and $4.4M as the biggest opening of the year; also above HTTYD3, Sing, Zootopia, and KFP3. School holidays begin on Wednesday for a week.

Brazil was also a No. 1 start with $2.5M for the second-biggest DWA opening of all time, the biggest opening of the franchise, and the biggest opening of 2024. The launch is in line with HTTYD3 and Puss in Boots 2; and above Zootopia, KFP3, Wish and Elemental.

Netherlands gave KFP4 $1.5M for the biggest opening of the franchise. Sweden, Finland, Israel and Hungary also all opened with the biggest starts of the series.

The Top 5 markets to date are China ($25.7M), Mexico ($22.8M), Germany ($6.9M), Spain ($6.2M) and Italy ($4.4M).

As for Dune: Part Two, which last week bested its predecessor worldwide, the sequel has now topped it overseas with $341M from 73 markets (the previous movie having done $293.7M at historic rates during its initial run). The international weekend was $30.7M for a good 41% dip. Signs are pointing towards $650M global at this point — the over depends on how much oxygen WB/Legendary’s Godzilla x Kong takes up. 

In like-for-like markets and using today’s exchange rates, Dune 2 is notably tracking 73% ahead of 2021’s Dune and 22% over Godzilla vs Kong.

The Top 5 markets to date are China ($43.9M), UK ($38.8M), France ($31.8M), Germany ($29.3M) and Australia ($17.9M).

In IMAX, the global cume is $124M, now the 8th highest grossing IMAX title of all time. Internationally, the cume is $65.7M which is the 7th biggest for the format.

Elsewhere, Sony Pictures International Productions released Chinese sensation YOLO in Malaysia with $1.6M. The debut is the 2nd highest ever for a Chinese movie in the market and has already passed the local lifetime totals of Hi, Mom and Lost in the Stars. In total this weekend, the Jia Ling-directed film took in $2.3M from six Sony Pictures Releasing International-distributed markets – including North America – for a total gross of $4.5M.

And, in Korea, blockbuster Exhuma is still riding high, now having crossed 10M admissions with an estimated $73.5M through Sunday.

MISC UPDATED CUMES/NOTABLE
Migration (UNI): $1.5M intl weekend (80 markets); $162.2M intl cume/$289.1M global
Bob Marley: One Love (PAR): $1.3M intl weekend (48 markets); $78.1M intl cume/$173.4M global
Anyone But You (SNY): $1M intl weekend (36 markets); $128.1M intl cume/$216.4M global