‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ was poised to pass US$1 billion in worldwide ticket sales this weekend and become the first picture to reach that mark so quickly.

The film, which officially opened in US theatres on Dec 18 and in some international markets on Dec 16, has generated box-office revenue of US$890.3 million worldwide through Christmas Day, Burbank, California-based Walt Disney Co said yesterday in a statement.

Prior to ‘The Force Awakens’, the fastest a movie crossed the US$1 billion threshold was Universal Pictures’ ‘Jurassic World’ in 13 days this past June. The new ‘Star Wars’ has already topped ‘Jurassic World’ for largest opening weekend this month and looks certain to clear US$1 billion by today, according to Rentrak Corp, an industry researcher. Today, studios will provide Saturday sales figures and full weekend estimates.

On Friday, ‘Star Wars’ set a Christmas Day record in US and Canadian cinemas, with ticket sales of US$49.3 million. Its worldwide total so far includes US$440.4 million domestically and US$449.9 million internationally.

Disney, which acquired ‘Star Wars’ creator Lucasfilm for US$4 billion in 2012, plans to make as many as five more movies in the series. The property has already given a boost to Disney’s consumer products, TV and theme-park divisions.

The success of ‘The Force Awakens’, Disney’s first picture since the acquisition, lays the groundwork for the company’s efforts with the franchise for years to come, according to chairperson and CEO Bob Iger.

“It’s bigger than big,” Iger said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Dec 21. “It’s bigger than we thought it would be.”

- Bloomberg