Heavy rain and stormy conditions did not deter Chinese moviegoers from racing to see "Furious 7" at midnight screenings on Sunday, with the Universal holdover taking $8.05 million.
According to the research group Entgroup, the previous record for midnight screenings was $3.38 million set by "Transformers: Age of Extinction", which went on to take $321 million in box office.
Vin Diesel, Jason Statham and Michelle Rodriguez came to Beijing in late March for the "Furious 7" premiere, and Diesel hinted that "Furious 8" might be shot here.
"If there is another Fast & Furious, it will be filmed in China," he told fans, later telling local media "the idea of an actor from China being in part of the 'Fast' saga feels inevitable."
He also shouted out, "I love China!" to hundreds of fans in the city's Sanlitun district. The love appears to have been reciprocated, and Universal is expecting major box office for the movie in the world's second-largest film market.
"Furious 7" crossed the $200 million mark on Friday in North America, its eighth day in releases, making it the fastest title in Universal's history to reach that mark, finishing the day with $210.7 million.
"Furious 7" is the first film in China to be released in cinemas in three major formats: 3-D, Imax and a domestic version of Imax from China Film Group, called China Giant Screen.
(Origin title: China Box Office: 'Furious 7' Takes Record $8.05M in Sunday Midnight Screenings)