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$158.5 Million weekend take in U.S. against a reported cost of $114 million

In the fictional Star Wars world(Wikipedia), the republic clone army turns on its Jedi commanders and raises Palpatine on the shield. For all the talk about today's realpolitik behind Lucas' showcase, take a look at the rise of the egotistical Caesar or the more effective and manipulative Octavian in Rome, who cleverly took advantage of civil war to consolidate authority; and the tumultous third century, when the troops repeately turned on their commanders and as many as six competing emperors existed at the same time...



LOS ANGELES - Moviegoers have turned out in full force for the final chapter of the "Star Wars" saga, which took in $158.5 million since its opening to shatter three-day and four-day box office records.

"Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith" grossed $124.7 million from Thursday to Saturday, according to studio estimates Sunday. That's higher than the three-day record set by the first "Spider-Man," which took in $114.8 million in May 2002 — though "Star Wars" had a lower Friday-Sunday take ($108.5 million) than the Tobey Maguire film.

"Revenge of the Sith" rang in a whopping $50 million on its opening Thursday, a single-day record boosted by eagerly anticipated midnight showings, and its total receipts since then beat the four-day $134.3 million opening of 2003's "The Matrix Reloaded." The George Lucas film has also grossed $144.7 million overseas for a total of $303 million worldwide.

"The reaction to the movie is absolutely spectacular," said Bruce Snyder, president of domestic distribution at Twentieth Century Fox.