MUMBAI: Warner Bros.‘ The Dark Knight Rises is expected to easily top the foreign box office chart despite the mishap by way of in-theatre shooting in Aurora in Colorado that left at least a dozen dead and a dozen more injured.
Neither the studio nor Rentrak are officially reporting worldwide grosses for the weekend out of respect for the victims, but insiders say that the last installment of Batman earned at least $70 million-plus from nine of the 17 countries where it released over the weekend. Official number are expected to be released on Monday.
The biggest market for Dark Knight Rises was the U.K., where the film grossed at least $16.1 million till Saturday with another $6 million i likely on Sunday. Australia came up with a weekend tally of $15.2 million, while South Korea looks to generate $15 million.
Spain is estimated to come up with another $4 million, with Hong Kong contributing $3 million. Dark Knight Rises opens in Germany, France and Japan this coming week.
In other weekend action, 20th Century Fox‘s Ice Age: Continental Drift drew $58.8 million on the weekend at 13,825 locations in 67 markets. The total for the fourth title in the Ice Age animation franchise stands at $442.7 million.

DreamWorks Animation and Paramount‘s Madagascar 3: Europe‘s Most Wanted, which has been playing overseas since 6 June, has grossed an offshore total of $282.5 million after a $6.1 million weekend at 4,977 venues in 44 countries. A No. 2 Netherlands opening delivered $2.7 million (including previews) from 205 situations

Paramount‘s The Dictator crossed the $100 million mark over the weekend, thanks to a $2.6 million weekend at 1,388 sites in 38 countries. The Sacha Baron Cohen comedy opens in the Philippines and Vietnam this week.