10 Hollywood Blockbusters That Were Saved By The Overseas Box Office

10. Pacific Rim (2013)

Worldwide Box Office: $411 million (75.2% Overseas)

The sci-fi monster movie Pacific Rim quickly gained a cult following in the U.S., but American fans were worried when it only barely broke $100 million at the U.S. box office on a $190 million budget; that meant that the possibility of a sequel from visionary director Guillermo del Toro was dead.

When a sequel was announced in June 2014, fans had China to thank. Pacific Rim grossed a massive $112 million in China, which pushed the film to profitability. It also grossed $20.6 million in Russia, $18.2 million in South Korea, and $16.1 million in del Toro’s native Mexico. On top of that, it was well-received in many smaller Asian regions, like Malaysia ($5.1 million), Hong Kong ($4.1 million), the Philippines and Thailand ($3.8 million each).

All of these figures proved that while Pacific Rim wasn’t a big U.S. box office hit, it was a worldwide favourite. It later became a strong seller on DVD and Blu-ray in the U.S., so when the sequel is released in 2017 it will interesting to see if it performs better at the U.S. box office,