04 December 2023 , 20:53
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Beyonce has been crowned queen of the box office after her epic concert movie Renaissance raked in more than $21 million (£16.6 million).
Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé opened with $21 million in North America, according to AMC Theatres, and it’s the first time in 20 years that a film has made more than $20 million (£15.8 million) on the first weekend after Thanksgiving.
The 42-year-old icon wrote, directed and produced the film, which follows her sell-out tour Renaissance, and has driven her fans wild with excitement.
It’s been reported that both Beyonce will receive at least 50% of ticket sales, meaning the Lemonade hitmaker has made more than $10 million in one weekend alone.
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Renaissance is number one at the US box officeElizabeth Frank, AMC Theatres executive vice president of worldwide programming, took the unusual step of thanking Beyonce in a gushing statement. “On behalf of AMC Theatres Distribution and the entire theatrical industry, we thank Beyoncé for bringing this incredible film directly to her fans,” she said.
“To see it resonate with fans and with film critics on a weekend that many in the industry typically neglect is a testament to her immense talent, not just as a performer, but as a producer and director,” she added.
There is usually a lull in cinemagoers following Thanksgiving, but a media analyst suggested Beyonce and her team chose a “great weekend” which ensured there was no stiff competition from other movie releases. “There was competition but it was from very different kinds of movies,” Paul Dergarabedian told NBC News.
Beyonce's epic tour finished in OctoberWhile Beyonce broke records, she’s not anywhere near the huge debut of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour film, which was released in October. That concert movie raked in $92.8 million (£73.5 million) on its opening weekend, and has since made more than $250 million (£198 million) around the world.
Beyonce’s massive Renaissance world tour kicked off in Stockholm, Sweden back in May and ended in Kansas City, Missouri on October 1, and made more than $500 million (£396 million). In comparison, Taylor’s Eras tour, which doesn’t finish until December next year, is expected to gross around $1.8 billion (£1.1billion).