'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Breaks Christmas Day Box Office Records

After smashing the opening day box office record upon its Dec. 17 release, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” went on to haul in $49.3 million in North America on Christmas Day — double the previous record set by 2009’s “Sherlock Holmes,” Agence France-Presse reported Saturday.

“The Force Awakens” has raked in $890.3 million internationally, including $440.4 million in the United States, and is set to overtake the domestic record of $500 million, currently held by “Jurassic World.”

“‘Star Wars’ continues to be a bright, shining beacon of light at the box office,” Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations, an industry tracker, told AFP.

Reviews for the film, which is the seventh installment of the massively popular franchise, and its director J.J. Abrams have been overwhelmingly positive as critics and fans alike say the film successfully rebooted the saga that was begun by George Lucas in 1977. The movie stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher.

All-time box office sales records are held by two James Cameron films: “Avatar,” grossing $2.79 billion, and “Titanic,” which raked in $2.19 billion. Some industry experts believe “Star Wars” could surpass both.

Far behind were the other best-performing films on Christmas Day. They included “Daddy’s Home,” the Paramount comedy with Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg, grossing $15.7 million, while “Sisters” from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler brought in $13.9 million, Variety reported. "Joy," starring Jennifer Lawrence, also came in above forecasts at $6.9 million on Dec. 25.