LOS ANGELES:

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” remains a potent player at the box office, hitting $653 million worldwide following Wednesday screenings.

The eighth “Star Wars” movie grossed $18 million domestically at 4,157 locations on Wednesday, giving it $358.6 million in its first 13 days to make it the sixth-highest domestic grosser of the year, ahead of “Zootopia” ($341 million). It should become the third top domestic earner of 2016 on Thursday, surpassing “The Secret Life of Pets” ($368 million), “The Jungle Book” ($364 million), and “Deadpool” ($363 million).

Disney-Lucasfilm’s “Rogue One” outdistanced IlluminationUniversal’s animated comedy “Sing,” which came in with $15.6 million on its eighth day in release on Wednesday at 4,022 domestic sites. “Sing” has earned $108.7 million in eight days.

“Rogue One” reeled in another $19.9 million internationally on Wednesday to reach $295.2 million, led by the UK with $53.1 million, Germany with $28.8 million, France with $25.2 million, Australia with $23.1 million, and Japan with $18.9 million.

“Rogue One” opened in South Korea on Wednesday with $900,000 and will launch in China on Jan 6. Director Gareth Edwards and stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Donnie Yen, and Jiang Wen attended the Beijing premiere on Dec 21. (RTRS)