‘The Hobbit’ tops $1-billion mark in worldwide box-office sales

Warner Bros.’ New Line division may be let down over the underwhelming opening of its big-budget “Jack the Giant Slayer,� but the company has something to celebrate: “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey� crossed the $1-billion milestone Sunday.

The first in Peter Jackson’s 3-D film trilogy based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 kids novel is the 15th film to gross more than $1 billion worldwide at the box office. The filmmaker’s “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King� is also a member of the club, as the 2003 release ended up with a staggering worldwide tally of $1.1 billion.

When “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey� debuted in the U.S. and Canada in December, its $84.6-million launch was actually far below what industry polling had suggested the film would start off with. However, the movie proved it had legs and ended up grossing $301.4 million domestically.

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But it was the movie’s phenomenal overseas performance that turned the $250-million production into a hit. To date, the movie about a hobbit trying to save a group of dwarves from a dragon has sold $700 million in tickets internationally -- roughly 70% of its overall gross. Its recent performance in China helped to push “The Hobbit� past the $1-billion mark, collecting $37.3 million in 10 days. The movie did better, however, in Germany and Britain, grossing more than $80 million in each foreign market.

“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,� the second entry in Jackson’s trilogy, is set to hit theaters Dec. 13. Last week, however, Warner Bros. announced that the third installment, “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,� would be released later than expected. The final film in the trilogy was initially set to debut in July 2014, but instead will now be released in December 2014.

[For the Record, 4:10 p.m. March 3: An earlier version of this post said “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King� ended up with a worldwide gross of $1.1 million. The correct figure is $1.1 billion.]

ALSO:

‘Jack the Giant Slayer’ is 2013’s first major box-office flop

‘The Hobbit’ breaks December record with $84.8-million debut

‘The Hobbit: There and Back Again’ release pushed to Dec. 17, 2014

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