Disney feels the force as Rogue One enjys huge opening weekend
The latest episode of the Star Wars series, Rogue One, has taken in over $290m in its first weekend in cinemas, pushing Walt Disney higher in the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Monday.
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In the United States alone on its first day of screenings Rogue One: A Star Wars Story raked in more than $71m, indicating that the company's significant $4bn investment may well be worth it.
Rogue One is not directly linked to the traditional Star Wars franchise, but has been strategically released by Disney after its purchase of Lucasfilm from the series' creator George Lucas. A film from its main story line will be released every two years, with each intervening year being filled by a spin-off.
Last year's release of The Force Awakens put it atop the rankings of the highest-grossing opening weekends in film history, with the latest offering coming in at twelfth position.
Disney had risen 1.82% to $105.78 in the Dow Jones early on Monday.
Rogue One has already taken £16.8m at the UK box office and is yet to open in China and South Korea, with next year's arrival of the as yet untitled Episode VIII possibly becoming one of the biggest ever money spinners, according to comScore analyst Paul Dergarabedian.
"The next film in the Star Wars saga has the potential to claim the title as the biggest movie of all time," he said.