Spectre breaks United Kingdom box office records

It's interesting to note that "Skyfall" is the first Bond movie to cross the $1 billion mark so that means everyone is expecting "Spectre" to do the same.

"Spectre" had its global premiere last month, but, so far there have been no sightings of a Sony Xperia or Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge unit on the film or any promotional material.

Kiwi fans have to wait until Thursday to see Actor Daniel Craig as Bond for the forth time in the latest 007 installment, Spectre.

The James Bond films have never shied away from product placement - Sean Connery swapped Martinis for Red Stripe in Dr. No while Heineken paid $45 million for 007 to drink their beer in Skyfall.

Daniel Craig's Bond fights Dave Bautista's Mr Hinx in a standout

This evening it has been confirmed that SPECTRE, the 24th movie in the James Bond franchise has opened with a record breaking week in the U.K, besting any other opening in United Kingdom history, but more importantly, it has achieved a bigger opening than Skyfall (and any of the Harry Potter movies for that matter). Producers denied reports that the script was changed at the request of executives from Sony Pictures and MGM Studios, eager to save money after the government offered $14 million in tax incentives in return for a better image.

The film which was directed by Sam Mendes, has taken in $80.4 million in the six territories it has been released in. It also scored the highest per screen average ever for an IMAX release, with over $100,000 earned in a single screen. In Sweden, the film generated almost $3 million.

Gary Barber, MGM chairman and CEO, added: "What an incredible thrill it is for us at MGM to see how James Bond continues to deliver such excitement to his fans".

Box office analysts are predicting an opening weekend in the region of $80m in the U.S., and there's a sporting chance that Spectre may overtake the colossal $1.1bn box office take of Skyfall.

The film also stars Christopher Waltz, Ralph Fiennes, Lea Seydoux, Andrew Scott, and Monica Belucci.