Eclipse Eclipses Everything—Except…

Third Twilight film scores $68.5 million opening day, setting a summer record, but settling for No. 2 on all-time debut list

By Joal Ryan Jul 01, 2010 4:27 PMTags
Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart, EclipseSummit Entertainment

A record-setting midnight can't be wrong: Eclipse made a whole lot of money yesterday.

The third Twilight film grossed an estimated $68.5 million, besting the opening-day mark of every movie ever released—except New Moon.

To one box office analyst, there's no mystery in why Eclipse was unable to eclipse its elder sibling.

"Honestly," Exhibitor Relations' Jeff Bock said today, "the only reason is that [Eclipse] opened on a Wednesday instead of a Friday [like New Moon]."

The quirks of the calendar did not prevent Eclipse from setting a couple of new records: The movie is now the biggest Wednesday grosser ever, topping Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen, and, more impressive, the biggest single summer-day grosser ever, beating the box office's still-ultimate summer movie, The Dark Knight.

Eclipse's dual single-day and opening-day mark is the new No. 2 of all time, behind New Moon's ultimate $72.7 million haul. And, of course, Eclipse owns the midnight record, with nearly half of its Wednesday take, some $30 million, coming from night-owl screenings.

Reputedly produced for just under $70 million, Eclipse should top $100 million overall today. By the end of Sunday, it could have anywhere from $160 million to $175 million or more in the domestic bank.

Said Bock: "That's box office bite like we've never seen before."

Follow @TwilightDish for all your Eclipse needs.

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