10 Hollywood Blockbusters That Were Saved By The Overseas Box Office

Worldwide Box Office: $206.2 million (80.9% Overseas)

When The Expendables 3 grossed just $39.3 million in the U.S. – about a third of what the original action hero team-up movie had grossed in 2010 – most box office analysts wrote it off as a major bomb. To them, the ageing action stars had followed series creator Sylvester Stallone into battle one too many times. Many also blamed the sequel’s poor performance on the fact that the movie had leaked online three weeks before it was released in theatres and had been illegally downloaded over two million times.

However, even though most of the downloads were traced to outside the U.S., ironically the film performed far better overseas. The Expendables 3 grossed $166.9 million outside the U.S., with $72.8 million from China alone. While The Expendables and The Expendables 2 made 62% and 72% of their money from the international box office respectively, The Expendables 3’s low U.S. grosses meant that a higher percentage of its worldwide box office came from outside the U.S.

Though there are no definite plans for another Expendables sequel, $206 million worldwide despite over two million illegal downloads suggests there is still plenty of interest in the franchise overseas.