'The Last Jedi' soars to USD 450m opening at global box-office

'The Last Jedi' has started its journey with a thumping victory and it is not in a galaxy far, far away.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the eighth installment in the epic sci-fi franchise 'Star Wars' has taken the global box-office by storm as the movie got a whopping USD 450m opening, having the 5th best debut ever.

Rian Johnson's second installment in the third 'Star Wars' trilogy set the mark for second-best opening weekend of all time by taking in over USD 220 million since its release.

Internationally, director Rian Johnson's tentpole took in USD 230 million from 54 markets for a worldwide launch of USD 450 million.

'The Last Jedi' opened a mere 11 percent behind 'The Force Awakens' record-shattering domestic launch of USD 247.9 million on the same weekend in 2015 and the movie came in 18 percent behind 'Force Awakens 'overseas'.

The Last Jedi is just the fourth film in history to have an opening of more than USD 200 million, joining 'The Force Awakens', 'Jurassic World' (USD 208.8) and 'The Avengers' (USD 207.4).

Disney distribution chief Dave Hollis noted that they expected the movie to fall behind 'The Force Awakens' by as much as 20 percent around the world.

He said, "The results speak to the power of representation. It's a movie that is relatable, both because of the characters and the conflict."

The 'Star Wars 'franchise has two more films planned - 2018's anthology film 'Solo' and 2019's Episode IX - as well as a new trilogy from 'Last Jedi' director Rian Johnson.