Weekend Box Office: 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Opens With $84.1 Million
The J.J. Abrams-directed sequel Star Trek Into Darkness closed with $84.1 million in North America its solid four-day debut, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The film earned $40 million overseas over the weekend for an early global total of $164.6 million. Many box office observers believed Into Darkness had potential at hitting $100 million in North America.
Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto returned to the roles of Captain James T. Kirk and Spock in Into Darkness. Other returning cast members include Zoe Saldana, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, John Cho and Karl Urban.
This time, a manipulatve villain played by Benedict Cumberbatch resorts to terrorism to threaten Earth. The script was written by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof. Paramount and Skydance co-financed the $190 million project and produced alongside Abrams' Bad Robot.
Abrams' Star Trek brought in $79.5 million its first 3.5 days in 2009. The film reinvigorated the sc-fi film franchise and seemingly restarted an old franchise. THe reboot turned the Star Trek franchise into a big-budget action-adventure and designed it to appeal to Trekkies and non-Trekkies alike.
The film reeped success due to strong word-of-mouth, earning $257 million domestic and, even when considering for inflation, became the most successful Star Trek film ever released.
The film did not do as well overseas and earned $128 million foreign. Arguably it cost too much to produce at an estimated $150-$200 million. Producers reportedly expected that the theoretical Star Trek 2 would be a box office hit. With a $84 million four-day gross that is just 6% higher than the original film's $79.5 million 3.25 day gross, the sequel did not earn according to expectations.
