10 Hollywood Blockbusters That Were Saved By The Overseas Box Office

Worldwide Box Office: $226.3 (75.4% Overseas)

Hansel And Gretel: Witch Hunters, the violent tongue-in-cheek reimagining of the fairy tale, already created low expectations when it bounced around Paramount’s release schedule throughout 2012. When it finally hit U.S. theatres in January 2013, the Jeremy Renner/Gemma Arterton action flick received awful reviews and managed to gross just $55.7 million at the U.S. box office.

However, the movie was already exploding overseas, including grossing $22.8 million in Brazil, $19 million in Russia, and $18.3 million in Germany. The international take was $170.6 million, making the film a sizable hit on its $50 million budget. On top of that, the film did that even without having a full release in China, which would have likely made the film an even bigger international hit.

Unsurprisingly, Paramount and producers (which, believe it or not, includes Will Ferrell) decided to go forward with a sequel, which is still in pre-production. Adding China into the mix could make Hansel and Gretel 2 a $300 million movie.