Box Office: 'Breaking Dawn II' Reigns With Massive Opening, Breaks Franchise Record

As predicted by many observers, "The Twilight Saga's Breaking Dawn Part II" successfully claims victory on North American box office with record-breaking opening in November. Grabbing an estimated $141.3 million, the final installment of the "Twilight Saga" film series marks the biggest debut this month in addition to scoring some other records domestically and globally. 

Gaining an "A" CinemaScore, "Breaking Dawn II" also scores big with a record-breaking $340.9 million worldwide, which marks the best global opening ever for the franchise. Internationally, the Bill Condon-helmed movie takes in $199.6 million from 61 markets.

The finale becomes the second biggest opener for the famous vampire movie franchise. Though scoring big on its first weekend, the movie released on November 18 can't beat the $142.8 million opening collected by its predecessor "The Twilight Saga's New Moon" on the same November weekend in 2009.

Compared to previous "Twilight" movie, this final chapter draws more male audience who make up 21% of the ticketbuyers. 50% of the moviegoers are over the age of 25, reflecting the aging fanbase famously known as Twi-hards.

Dropping from the top spot last week is "Skyfall", which secures the runner-up place with around $41.5 million. The twenty-third James Bond movie also breaks worldwide record by grossing $669.2 million, marking the top-grossing 007 film of all time. Domestically, the Daniel Craig-starring actioner bags a total cume of $161.3 million after two weeks of playing nationwide.

Landing on the third spot, Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" rakes in an estimated $21 million after it gets expanded into nationwide release this weekend. Meanwhile, "Wreck-It Ralph" and "Flight" place fourth and fifth respectively. The animated movie bags around $18.3 million on its second weekend, while the pilot drama collects approximately $8.6 million on its third weekend.

In the box office specialty, Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper's highly-praised dramedy, "Silver Linings Playbook", performs strong in 16 theaters as it takes in around $458,430 for a location average of $28,652. The film was originally projected to open nationwide just in time for Thanksgiving, but the plan was scrapped in order to build momentum throughout awards season. The film will expand to just 400 theaters this coming Wednesday, November 21. 

Another potential awards contender, "Anna Karenina", also performs well in 16 screens in select cities. Already earning $10.8 million overseas, the Keira Knightley and Jude Law-starring period drama grosses an estimated $315, 395 for a location average of $19,712.

Top Ten Movies at Box Office for November 16-18: 

1. "The Twilight Saga's Breaking Dawn Part II" - $141.3 million
2. "Skyfall" - $41.5 million
3. "Lincoln" - $21 million
4. "Wreck-It Ralph" - $18.3 million
5. "Flight" - $8.6 million
6. "Argo" - $4 million
7. "Taken 2" - $2.1 million
8. "Pitch Perfect" - $1.2 million
9. "Here Comes the Boom" - $1.2 million
10. "Cloud Atlas" - $900,000 million