Warner Bros. Pictures Group Has Another Record-Breaking Year At Box Office

Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Bros. Pictures Group has announced that the studio enjoyed another hugely successful year, with a combined worldwide box office gross of more than $4.7 billion, led by 2011’s top-grossing film, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2.”

Warner Bros. has now exceeded $4 billion globally for three consecutive years, a milestone no other studio has ever achieved. In addition, with a domestic box office gross of more than $1.83 billion, Warner Bros. is the only studio to surpass the billion dollar mark eleven years in a row, and, in addition, it has done so 12 out of the last 13 years. Setting another record, Warner Bros. is the only studio to have topped $1.8 billion domestically for three years running.

There have also been a number of international benchmarks. The studio has surpassed $1 billion at the international box office a total of 14 times, with four of those years exceeding $2 billion, including 2011. The studio earned $2.87 billion internationally last year, and was the number one studio in Europe.

In making the announcement, Robinov stated, “Our 2011 slate saw a broad range of hits that encompassed comedy, action, suspense, and, of course, a little magic. We share these successes with our production partners, as well as all those who worked so hard, not only to make the movies but to bring them to a worldwide audience.”

The cornerstone of the studio’s success in 2011 was the record-breaking finale of the top-grossing Harry Potter film franchise, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2,” which earned more than $1.33 billion worldwide to become not only the highest-grossing film of the year but also the third-highest-grossing of all time, globally. Among the numerous records that the film broke during its theatrical run, it had the biggest opening weekend of all time, both domestically and internationally, and, on the international side, it is the highest-grossing Warner Bros. movie of all time.

A wide variety of other Warner Bros. releases that opened in 2011 went on to gross well over $100 million worldwide, just a few of which include “The Hangover Part II” ($586 million), “Horrible Bosses” ($215 million), “Final Destination 5” ($164 million), “Crazy, Stupid, Love.” ($148 million), and “Contagion” ($141 million), as well as the current release “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows,” which has grossed $286 million worldwide to date, with 25 international markets, including a number of major territories, yet to open. Warner Bros. also saw nine of its releases open at number one domestically.

Looking ahead to 2012, Warner Bros. Pictures has some of the most anticipated films of the coming year, with just a sample including “Wrath of the Titans,” the sequel to the blockbuster “Clash of the Titans,” starring Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes; Tim Burton’s “Dark Shadows,” with Johnny Depp leading an all-star ensemble cast, including Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter and Eva Green; Adam Shankman’s screen version of the hit musical “Rock of Ages,” starring Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough, Russell Brand, Paul Giamatti, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Malin Akerman, Mary J. Blige, Bryan Cranston and Alec Baldwin; “The Dark Knight Rises,” Christopher Nolan’s epic conclusion to his Batman trilogy, starring Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Morgan Freeman; the true-life drama “Argo,” directed by and starring Ben Affleck; the drama “The Gangster Squad,” starring Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone; Peter Jackson’s return to Middle-earth with “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey“; and Baz Luhrmann’s screen adaptation of the classic “The Great Gatsby,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role.