‘Fifty Shades’ of Green: Film torches box office, record books

LOS ANGELES — “Fifty Shades of Grey” torched record books this weekend, debuting to a white hot $81.7 million domestically and $239.7 million globally.

By introducing moviegoers to little explored sections of the Kama Sutra, Universal Pictures’ erotic romance became the highest-grossing Presidents Day Weekend opener. It also established new benchmarks for R-rated fare.

Not shabby for a film that cost $40 million to produce before factoring in promotional and distribution costs. Sam Taylor-Johnson directed the film with Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson assuming the lead roles. Sequels to the picture have yet to earn a greenlight, but given the results, that appears to be a formality.

Here’s a look at some of the records that got incinerated thanks to Christian Grey’s smoldering glare.

• Biggest Presidents Day Weekend Opener (Previous record holder was “Valentine’s Day” with $56.3 Million)
• Second Highest Grossing Debut for a Film by a Female Director (Current record holder is “The Matrix Reloaded” from Lana Wachowski)
• Highest Number of Playdates for an R-rated Opening with 3,646 locations (Previous record holder was “The Hangover Part II” with 3,615)
• Biggest Single-Day February Gross with Saturday’s $36.7 Million Haul (Previous record holder was “Passion of the Christ” with $33.1 million)
• Second Biggest February Debut (Record holder remains “The Passion of the Christ” with its $83.9 million opening)
• Fourth Biggest R-Rated Opening (Record holders are “The Matrix Reloaded with $91.8 million, “The Hangover Part II” with $85.9 million and “The Passion of the Christ” with $83.9 million)
• Universal’s Second Biggest International Box Office Debut with $158 million (Record holder is “Fast & Furious 6” with $160.3 million)
• Biggest R-Rated Opening Internationally (Previous record holder was “The Matrix Revolutions” with $117 million)