Thanks to decent reviews and strong consumer buzz, the Chris Columbus-directed fantasy would leg out to $318 million domestic, the seventh-biggest domestic gross ever at that time and earn $974 million worldwide to come in behind only Titanic ($1.8 billion in 1997/1998) among global earners. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/WireImage) WireImage HOLLYWOOD - JULY 09: Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson at the Hand, Foot and Wand-Print Ceremony at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Jin Hollywood, California. That’s an oversimplification, but there’s a reason Tyler Perry struck it huge in 2005 and why Tony Scott/Denzel Washington actioners started to feel like fountains in a desert. Alongside Spider-Man the next year, Harry Potter would personify the kind of movie Hollywood was making instead of making, well, anything else. It also, through no fault of its own, set the course for the next wave of attempted blockbusters, with at least a decade’s worth of young white males discovering that they were the special amid a fantasy adventure designed to appeal to all quadrants all around the world. It was indeed a watershed moment, in that a star-free (all due respect to some very respected British thespians making up the supporting cast) and entirely IP-specific brand sell would be absolutely expected to become one of the biggest-grossing movies of all time. It easily dethroned The Lost World: Jurassic Park ($74 million Fri-Sun/$92 million Fri-Mon over Memorial Day 1997) as the opening weekend champion. Rowling’s first four books, nabbed a then-record-breaking $32 million Friday gross and $90 million Fri-Sun debut. The first Harry Potter, coasting on oodles of free media as a preordained champion and a massive fan base related to J.K. It was a fitting climax to a year which saw an increase in previously unthinkable opening weekends, with the likes of Tomb Raider ($47 million), Shrek ($42 million) and Hannibal ($58 million) scoring massive debuts and the likes of The Mummy Returns ($68 million), Planet of the Apes ($68 million) and Rush Hour 2 ($66 million) coming within inches of setting new weekend milestones. Today is the 20th anniversary of the domestic theatrical release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
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