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Solid International Box Office Means 'Pacific Rim' Sequel Now Likely

by Ethan Anderton
August 1, 2013

Legendary Entertainment actually began planning a sequel to Pacific Rim, the giant sized blockbuster from director Guillermo del Toro, last December. But when the film wasn't tracking well with audiences leading up to the release, that prospect seemed like it would go out the window. So far the film has pulled in only just over $87 million here in the United States, which hardly makes it a runaway hit on a budget of $190 million. However, the worldwide total is over $227 million and counting with a recent record-breaking performance in China being the final key in making a sequel to the original sci-fi film very likely. Read on!

Though the film only pulled in $9 million on opening weekend in China, Deadline says that's enough to be the biggest opening for a Warner Bros. film, including any of the Harry Potter sequels. Pacific Rim also The movie took down Universal's Fast & Furious 6 from the top spot at the Chinese box office and boasted the second-highest opening day of the year for a Hollywood title (the top spot belongs to Iron Man 3). Though it sounds like the expensive film still may lose some money, Legendary is still keen on a sequel, but it likely won't end up at Warner Bros. considering the company's new deal with Universal. Pacific Rim still has to open in Japan, Brazil and Spain, so there should be more box office bucks on the way.

As for the sequel, the world that del Toro created in Pacific Rim has a lot of potential for some interesting sequels. The director recently talked about some of the ideas floating around, but stop reading if you don't want any spoilers. Del Toro told MTV that following the events of the first film, "We will have Gipsy 2.0 for sure. Second thing is you’re gonna see a merging of Kaiju and Jaeger. And that is quite special." The director also said, "We’ve drifted with a Kaiju brain. Well, then start riffing on that and you’ll get to something." Personally, I really hope a Pacific Rim sequel gets off the ground sooner than later.

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50 Comments

I like how movies today get a sequel depending on how well they gross, and not based on if it has a worth while story to tell. Guarantee the sequel is fucking awful.

DotaD on Aug 1, 2013

Only 9 million? I hate this logic. Smashing box office does not a good movie make. Avatar was sub-par story wise...Transformers...need I say more. The Pirates of the Caribbean sequels *shudders* Good movies deserve sequels...but only if there is a story to tell.

Xerxexx on Aug 1, 2013

I think a lot of people didn't understood the homage he was paying to the big robots of the past and their monsters. My nephew and the 20-somethings kept on saying how it was a Power Ranger or Bay's Transforemers rip off. It was a fantastic movie fr an old skool fool like me and would love another but different.

mooreworthy on Aug 1, 2013

My god, those people... to compare Pacific Rim with Transformers is like comparing Django Unchained with The Lone Ranger...

wylles on Aug 1, 2013

(shudders)

mooreworthy on Aug 3, 2013

Great does this mean we get an After Earth sequel because it also made its money back overseas after all of the false reports about it flopping. Do I want an After Earth Sequel? No! It's just the principal. Honestly Pacific Rim was awesome for what it was, a sequel will be welcome for me. But then ironically it becomes the movie that we were happy it was not....an original movie that's not a part of an existing franchise, a sequel/prequel or a comic book film. Milking it makes it just like the rest! Guillermo should move on to direct more original movies. He had his fun now leave it be

Me Again on Aug 1, 2013

It's not like Del Toro's in a rush to get a sequel in production anyway. I mean his projects literally take years to get off the ground.

Landfill on Aug 1, 2013

So the sequel is going to be Evangelion?

Kevin Bingham on Aug 1, 2013

Pass...

N. on Aug 1, 2013

I liked Pacific Rim.

Isildur_of_Numenor on Aug 1, 2013

It was kickass fun.

mooreworthy on Aug 1, 2013

I, for one, enjoyed this movie immensely, and I'm excited to hear there will be a sequel!

EmagSamurai on Aug 1, 2013

I thought it was just going to be an expensive parody of Transformers. I saw it in IMAX and it blew me away, I enjoyed it a lot and definitely support a sequel.

JAdog101 on Aug 1, 2013

Im glad you see it like that, people who compare PacRim to Transformers, would compare, I dont Know, Django Unleashed to The Lone Ranger...

wylles on Aug 1, 2013

You all are living in a dream world. There ain't a gonna be no sequel to this dumb movie. Why throw good money to bad? Even the studios ain't that stupid. Forget about it!

Bo on Aug 1, 2013

Hey Bo I see the internet is back up in your mom's basement.. Good news dude !!

Tester on Aug 1, 2013

Adam Sandler anyone?

mooreworthy on Aug 1, 2013

How the hell do you know know delusional idiot. Del Toro confirmed it himself!

StrS on Aug 24, 2013

I don't think the foreign numbers are impressive. In the US the studio gets 50% of the ticket price, overseas it's only like 15%. Besides that huge budget doesn't even include marketing costs, which are at least as high..

DavideCoppola on Aug 1, 2013

This is not true at all. In fact, no part of it is true. Each individual deal is made by the studios with the theater and the percentages usually change for how many weeks in release the movie is. Either way the studios take most of the money and it is no different with foreign sales than it is with domestic sales. Take X-men: First Class. According to box office mojo the budget for the movie was 160 million. The domestic gross of the movie was a little over 234 million. Cut that in half and you get 117 million. The foreign box office was a little less than 225 million. 15 percent of that is less than 34 million. So X-men: First Class a "hit" movie made 151 million for the studio. That is 9 million less than its budget.

robephiles on Aug 1, 2013

Yes exactly, because most movies don't make their money back with box office alone. A hit is a film that makes the money back, so X-men: FIrst class is a bad example. As for the percentages, yes those are rules of thumb, they may vary, but not substantially. You can look it up.

DavideCoppola on Aug 2, 2013

I took whole classes in film school on this but thank you for your arrogance to go with your misinformation. I was also a manager at a movie theater. George Lucas demanded 100% of the box office takes on the Star Wars prequels and we had to take that deal or not get the movie. The average amount the studio takes on the first weekend is between 75%-80% percent of the ticket sales. A movie like first class could not be a hit if it made 9 million under budget. There are marketing costs, distribution costs others added on top of that. Video and TV brings in money but not that much. A movie is only really considered a hit if it is into the black before it comes to video. Studios also have to pay executive and CEO salaries that are not attached to any given movie. Every movie makes a profit eventually. Even Cleopatra, then the most expensive movie ever made and a famous bomb, made its money back after years had passed. But the studios need to operate a business on a daily basis and if movies can;t be in the black while they are in theaters this just isn't going to happen.

robephiles on Aug 4, 2013

I actually really liked it, but would prefer Del Toro got onto some other stuff.

Carpola on Aug 1, 2013

agreed

si1ver on Aug 1, 2013

I think what turned people off to the movie was the cheesy acting done by the main character. There were some great performances but I think the story definitely lacked. I saw the movie to see the Kaiju and Jaegers fighting and in that sense it delivered. The problem with Most of the people going to see movies in America is that they are so used to seeing movies based on properties that they are familiar with. So going to spend money on an overpriced movie ticket to see a movie that they don't have any type of attachment to already is not as common. This is hollywoods fault completely.

ListenToVinyl on Aug 1, 2013

Well, once it's released in Japan, that'll boost their sales by about $1,000,000,000USD

dvt on Aug 1, 2013

"we are not hosting an intergalactic kai-ger.".....sorry, had to say it.

mooreworthy on Aug 1, 2013

"The latest development is the 3D sci-fi actioner’s Wednesday opening in China to a record-breaking $9M from an estimated 5,700 digital 3D screens, 117 digital 3D IMAX screens, and 22 China Giant Screen sites." Sounds like the $9 mil figure is for one day, not the weekend.

titan98rg on Aug 1, 2013

I figured that it would do well in China - and should also in Japan. Really hope this gets a sequel, as the 1st movie was a blast.

Brent Snyder on Aug 1, 2013

Man, this movie deserves double the box office it has so far, and a trilogy, but with good or better scripts, and acting leads...

wylles on Aug 1, 2013

As long as GDT is attached to direct, I AM ALL IN!!!

DAVIDPD on Aug 1, 2013

Pretty sure the $9 million debut in China was the opening DAY, not the opening weekend.

Chris Groves on Aug 1, 2013

As long as we actually get to see MORE of the OTHER Jaegers, I'm in. Despite some truly awful writing (and acting), hyping up some of the Jaegers only to NOT show them off, was a little frustrating.

quazimoto on Aug 1, 2013

Wait until it hits japan.

Jim Dawkins on Aug 1, 2013

for sure, Monsters+robots+japan = chiching $$$$$$$$

dante on Aug 3, 2013

I loved Pacific Rim, I've seen it at least 6 times already..now I'm grateful, they can do the sequel, then if Godzilla is successful, then we can get Gaiking, and maybe the Monsterpocalypse movie that Tim Burton was attached to do...

jah p on Aug 1, 2013

I fucking LOVED this flick. Tempted to see it in the theater again.

Bibowski on Aug 1, 2013

YES!! Yes yes yes. oh happy day! hahha

Lamar on Aug 2, 2013

Watched it for the third time, hell yea

orrewidis on Aug 3, 2013

if there is going to be a Gypsy 2.0 they dam well better give us a Striker 2.0 we aussies had the best damn Jaeger of anyone and an American touches it once and blows it up..... not cool America let the other kids have a cool toy

Luke on Aug 3, 2013

hahahaha ..nice one 😛

Danny on Aug 3, 2013

thats what happens to America's lackey's. no wonder they booted you guys out. Idris Elba is British, mate!

karl on Aug 4, 2013

Striker Eureka 2.0 -Replace chest mounted missiles for cannons that shoot Australian wildlife. The Kaiju would be crying back to their masters.

Rohan Pannikadavil on Aug 5, 2013

I want a sequel, and a third film. I want graphic novels building on the 7 year Kaiju war, with more action figures. I want novels focusing on Cherno Alpha, Crimsion Typhoon, Romeo Blue, Tacit Ronin, and the other past Jaegers. I love the universe of Pacific Rim, and I want more of it.

Common Sense on Aug 3, 2013

I would really love to have less rain please

seracohw on Aug 11, 2013

I didn't really like Pacific Rim. Am I alone? It was ok with some and exciting battles and so forth. But overall I felt the internal logic was flawed, the acting was cheesy, and any humour was over the top and completely unfunny. None of my friends seem to have liked it either. The things I disliked most were: - The fact the whole planetary community seemed to be resting on a handful of robots saving them, yet we had no real sense of planetwide doom. The whole film focuses on this renegade government program team. - The acting, particularly from the "Aussies" (and I'm an Aussie), with their astonishingly bad (to us) accents. - The logic, or lack thereof. Build walls? What? - Build robots with technology clearly centuries beyond all other visible tech in the movie? What? Why not just evacuate all cities near the portal, and nuke the Kaiju from the air?

crystaltowers on Aug 19, 2013

You are not alone, my dear. You just have good taste and sense.

Clinton Pittman on Nov 7, 2013

"Put the monocole" You are not alone, my dear. You just have good taste and sense, AND juicy comes out of your mouth while you speak so beutifully. didn't like your comment, and i think you should watch the movie in contest.

Diogo Mello on Jun 26, 2014

Box office in China is over 100M now almost assuring a sequel. They need to amp up the battles, more robots smashing more monsters.

Guest on Aug 20, 2013

Wow, that is amazing. The Chinese audiences must be starved for entertainment. This had to be one of the most derivative movies I've ever seen. Nothing original, just borrowed bad lines, characters and plot lines from Top Gun, which wasn't particularly good or original itself, except for the "I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you" line. I was a little embarrassed that I watched the whole thing.

Clinton Pittman on Nov 7, 2013

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