'Furious 7' smashes Chinese box office records
- By Zhang Rui
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E-mail China.org.cn, April 13, 2015
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Top race cars on display at "Furious 7" China premiere in Beijing on April 12, 2015. [China.org.cn] |
IMAX China CEO Chen Jiande said: "'Furious 7' is one of the most anticipated films for 2015. The many beyond-limit car-racing scenes indicate the top production of the world film industry, as do the special effects, which were enhanced by IMAX technologies and screen. The box office results will be phenomenal and this is also thanks to Paul Walker, who made this film the most touching installment of the franchise."
Walker died on Nov. 30, 2013 in a car accident, and he hadn’t finished filming for "Furious 7" when he died. Several scenes were computer-generated with the help of Weta Digital, four similar-looking actors and Walker's brothers Caleb and Cody as stand-ins. The last five minutes are a touching tribute to Walker, and his character, Brian O'Conner, retires instead of getting killed in the film.
Film industry insiders in China said the sentiment for Walker's death has also contributed hugely to the record-breaking box office gross.
Another box office tracking website Box Office Mojo put its China debut day estimate at US$68.6 million, which is even higher than the film's opening day gross in the United States, where the film collected US$67.4 million and went on to gross US$147.2 million during the U.S. three-day weekend.
The new single day record set by "Furious 7" in China essentially equals to what the last movie of the franchise made in its entire run in the world's second largest film market.
With an estimated US$60.6 million, "Furious 7" also easily held on to first place at the U.S. box office. Over 12 days, “Furious 7” has earned a stunning US$548 million overseas. Including the U.S. takings, the movie has already grossed US$800 million worldwide.
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