With huge films like Avengers: Age of Ultron, Jurassic World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, 2015 was always going to be a big year for the box office. But which of these films will end up being the big winner of the year?
So far, it’s Jurassic World, which surprised industry analysts with an opening weekend that broke records, beating the original Avengers with around $209 million domestically. Since then, Jurassic World hasn’t slowed down much, becoming the fastest film ever to reach $1 billion internationally. But it’s just one of Universal Pictures’ many hits this year, all of which have led the studio to reach $3 billion already in 2015 – breaking the previous record by a longshot.
Universal Pictures has announced that it has become the fastest studio in history to cross the $3 billion milestone in a single year at the box office. The previous record holder was 20th Century Fox, who crossed the mark in October 2014. Not only that, but this also is the first time Universal has crossed the $3 billion mark ever, which is a monumental feat for the studio.
Universal managed all this thanks to a number of hits, including: Fifty Shades of Grey ($403.6 million), Furious 7 ($1.160 billion), Pitch Perfect 2 ($278.4 million) and Jurassic World ($1.392 billion). Minions also helped the effort, as it got off to a strong start in several international markets, where it has made $141.7 million so far. The animated film is set for release in North America and 25 additional international markets this weekend (at the time of this writing).
Universal is far from done this year, though, with a slew of other films set to hit theaters soon. Among them are the Amy Schumer comedy Trainwreck, the N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton, the action-adventure film Everest, and Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak.
Universal Pictures has had a huge start at the box office in 2015, but can it stay on top throughout the duration of the year? It might not be an easy task, as Disney has several big films still coming, including Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which could very well give Jurassic World a run for its money. However, with several strong releases still in the pipeline, Universal may end up being the 2015 box office champ after all.
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NEXT: Jurassic World Has Highest Global Box Office Opening Ever
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Jurassic World is now playing in theaters worldwide. Minions opens in theaters July 10, 2015; Trainwreck on July 17th, 2015; Straight Outta Compton on August 14th, 2015; The Visit on September 11th, 2015; Everest on September 18th, 2015; Legend on October 2nd, 2015; Steve Jobs on October 9th, 2015; Crimson Peak on October 16th, 2015; Jem and the Holograms on October 23rd, 2015; By the Sea on November 13th, 2015; Krampus on December 4th, 2015; Sisters on December 18th, 2015.
