'Potter' film franchise hits $7B marker

BURBANK, Calif., July 25 (UPI) -- The Harry Potter film franchise has crossed the $7 billion mark at the worldwide box office, Hollywood's Warner Bros. Pictures Group said.

The announcement was made by group President Jeff Robinov.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Part 2," the final installment in the blockbuster movie series, earned $640.2 million worldwide in its initial week.

The success of the movie has propelled Warner Bros. Pictures' combined 2011 domestic box office past $1 billion for an 11th consecutive year, which is an industry record, the studio said.

"It is an extraordinary privilege for everyone at Warner Bros. to share in this piece of cinema history," Robinov said in a statement. "We are extremely grateful to the Harry Potter fans, who have remained loyal to the movies for more than a decade. We also want to congratulate the amazing roster of actors and filmmakers, whose artistry and talent is evident in every frame of every film. But special thanks must go to the woman whose incomparable imagination literally changed the world, Jo Rowling, [author of the Harry Potter books]."

Sue Kroll, Warner Bros. Pictures president of worldwide marketing, added: "Each film has inspired us creatively and it has been exciting to watch the evolution through eight remarkable movies. It has truly been the movie event of a generation, as Harry Potter fans who were there from the beginning have been joined by new fans over the years, and their enthusiasm -- as well as our own -- has never waned."

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Movies/2011/07/25/Potter-film-franchise-hits-7B-marker/UPI-93721311597721/.