PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES rocks the worldwide box office–$346 million!

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides easily trounced the competition at the U.S. box office, earning an estimated $90.1 million in its first weekend of release. On Stranger Tides, starring Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, and Ian McShane, can boast the biggest U.S. opening for a film this year, besting Fast Five‘s opening take of $86 million. Still, the U.S. figures are a bit softer than expected — Disney was looking for a $100 million opening weekend in North America. The Hollywood Reporter says that the Pirates numbers reflect “the overall downturn at the domestic box office and the fact that it’s been four years since the last installment in the blockbuster franchise played on the big screen.”

Overseas, however, On Stranger Tides is off to a dazzling start, grossing 10 percent ahead of the last POTC installment, At World’s End. In just five days of release abroad, On Stranger Tides has earned $256 million. Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations writes, “Don’t be fooled by naysayers who are calling this a misfire, as it’s well on its way to being one of the top films of the summer on a global scale, as its early $346 million cume clearly indicates.”

The Zone thanks Emma and FANtasticJD for box office updates; you can read more on the Zone’s News & Views forum.