Box office: ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ opens with $9.5 million overseas

“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” the sequel to the 2012 superhero film, launched with $9.5 million in 11 international markets on its first day in release, Disney reported Thursday.

The Joss Whedon-directed film collected the most money in France, where it was the No. 1 opening of 2015, with $2.7 million. In the Philippines, the film pulled in $1.6 million, the biggest opening day of all time for that region.

It also made $1.5 million in Taiwan, $1.1 million in Italy, $900,000 in Indonesia and $1.7 million in other markets.

The Marvel tentpole, which is set to open in the U.S. on May 1, follows superheroes Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) as they battle against Ultron (James Spader).

Fandango, a movie ticketing company, reported earlier this month that an estimated 54% of surveyed ticket-buyers said the franchise film topped their list of summer picks.

Early tracking estimates suggest that the sequel could open with more than its predecessor’s $207.4-million debut, according to people familiar with pre-release audience surveys.

The film will continue its roll-out overseas this weekend. It opens in South Korea, Britain, Brazil, Australia, Russia, Germany and Argentina on Thursday.

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