Ten years, eight films and over six billion dollars – Warner Brothers’ Harry Potter film franchise is coming to a close this weekend and by all accounts it is going out with a bang. Leading up to its Friday debut, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 2 had already smashed the record for US pre-sales with $50 million worth of advanced tickets sold. Today Warner Brothers reports that the film took in $43.5 million from midnight screenings alone: easily topping the previous record of $30 million set by Twilight Saga: Eclipse last summer. A second Twilight Saga record now set to fall is the one-day US record of $72 million set by New Moon. With many of Potter’s 4,375 theatres screening this final installment back-to-back throughout Friday, a first day of $80 million is anticipated. Here in the US the film could go as high $180 million for its first weekend – though anything over $158 million would smash the all-time 3-day weekend benchmark set by The Dark Knight in 2008. Internationally Deathly Hallows 2 has taken in $58 million from 24 territories for a global cume of over $105 million. We’ll update you throughout the weekend as the most successful franchise in history wraps up its remarkable run.
