007 goes for the global grab

VARIETY.COM: Dominating international business, "Casino Royale" broke the bank at the overseas box office with $66.2 million at 6,600 playdates in 50 markets.
James Bond pic wiped out rivals via a strong second U.K. frame plus socko launches throughout Western Europe as it led in every new market, and posted the sixth-biggest weekend of 2006 internationally with an impressive per-location average of about $10,000.

The film saw offshore cume hit $128.2 million and worldwide grosses total $222.4 million.

"Casino" took in more than double the combined grosses of the next four pics -- "Borat," "The Departed," "Saw III" and "Open Season." "Casino" looks likely to surpass the record worldwide gross for a Bond pic of $431 million, set by "Die Another Day" four years ago, thanks to two factors -- no other tentpoles of similar magnitude will hit international markets soon and openings are still coming in big markets Japan, South Korea, Australia, Italy and Mexico.

"Casino" also will likely keep the 2006 foreign box office total for the five major distribs (BVI, Fox, Sony, UIP, Warner) on track to exceed the 2004 record of $8.5 billion and finish far ahead of last year's $7.9 billion.

It showed significant staying power in the U.K. with $16.6 million at 991, down only 24% from its opening weekend. The Brit cume has hit $53.6 million, a mere $3.7 million short of matching "Die Another Day" for top perf by a Bond pic in his home turf.

Germans gave solid support to "Casino" with $12 million at 1,180, in line with forecasts that predicted a launch similar to the $12.9 million opening for "The Da Vinci Code."

France followed with $8.4 million at 823, Spain debuted with $4 million at 500, and Switzerland bowed with $3 million at 161 -- the third-highest launch of all time in that market.

Scandinavia combined for $6.7 million for the Bond pic, led by Denmark with $2.5 million at 101, Sweden with $2.1 million at 133, Norway with $1.5 million at 98 and Finland with $780,000 at 60.

"Casino" also cashed in impressively in Holland, opening with $1.8 million at 133, followed by Austria with $1.6 million at 129 and Belgium with $1.5 million at 95. And Russian holdover biz stayed respectable with $2.8 million at 630, down 47%, and in India with $1.4 million at 427, off 56% in what's been the widest launch ever for a non-Bollywood pic in that market.

Thanks to "Casino Royale," Sony's posted its best year ever in overseas box office with $1.39 billion, surpassing the 2002 mark of $1.31 billion. "The Da Vinci Code" accounted for $532 million in foreign takings earlier this year.

Rivals mostly avoided going head to head with "Casino Royale." For example, BVI launched "Deja vu" only in Mexico -- a non-Bond market until Dec. 7 -- and the Denzel Washington starrer led with $1.1 million at 400, topping the third frame of "Babel" and "Children of Men."

Mad about Mads

VARIETY.COM: In his home country of Denmark, Mads Mikkelsen is big. George Clooney big. He's been voted "sexiest man in the world," won the Danish equivalent of an Oscar and is the one star who consistently packs 'em in at theaters.
But as the James Bond franchise reinvents itself with "Casino Royale," Mikkelsen will be transforming his international profile as well, thanks to a highly visible role as 007 archvillain Le Chiffre (played by none other than Peter Lorre and Orson Welles in previous versions).

"Nobody knows who I am here, so it's definitely starting over in the sense of being known. But I've been doing this for a while now, so that's fine," says Mikkelsen, who also will be courting U.S. auds as a dreamy humanitarian whose sex appeal gets in the way of his change-the-world ideals in "After the Wedding," Denmark's official Oscar selection.

Since his American film debut in Antoine Fuqua's "King Arthur" in 2004, the 41-year-old former dancer has just skirted Hollywood fame. His demo reel has made the rounds of top Hollywood casting directors, and the thesp was seriously considered for co-starring roles in "The Da Vinci Code" and "North Country."

It was his part in Dogma 95 film "Open Hearts" that caught "Casino Royale" producer Barbara Broccoli's attention. "We had to be sure that he could be a worthy opponent to James Bond," says Broccoli, who uses words like "flawless" and "electrifying" to describe Mikkelsen's performance. "I saw Mads in 'Open Hearts' and was impressed with his power and strength onscreen."

"It definitely put him on the radar with people who didn't already know him," says his L.A. rep, Sandra Chang of Industry Entertainment. "The way this town works, everything is by list, and suddenly you wind up higher on the list."

But Bond films don't usually make stars out of their villains, says Box Office Mojo publisher Brandon Gray, adding that "Casino Royale" could serve as a nice platform to launch Mikkelsen in more traditional roles.

"A good example is Sean Bean," says Gray. "He played the villain in 'GoldenEye,' Pierce Brosnan's debut as 007. He didn't go on to be a leading man in America, but he continues to be a very prolific actor, doing a lot of big movies."

According to Mikkelsen, who has yet to choose another American project, finding the right material is more important than the fame. "I still have Denmark, and I'm definitely going to live and work there for the rest of my life," he says. "Whatever happens outside of Denmark is just icing on the cake for me."

The actor made his film debut in 1996 as a small-time hood/junkie in "Pusher." For the next several years his films -- including "Flickering Lights," "Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself" and "The Green Butchers" -- made the festival circuit. Back in Scandinavia, it was his perf in the 2000 gritty police drama "Unit One" that catapulted him to Clooneylike star status.

In addition to "Casino Royale" and "After the Wedding," Mikkelsen has had a busy year abroad, starring in Peter Lindmark's Swedish action thriller "Exit" and relationship drama "Prague" by Ole Christian Madsen.

"I've never thought about having a career, to be honest," says Mikkelsen. "I've always tried to focus on the jobs and, hopefully, eventually that will become a career later on."

Just a quick post…

Tillykke med fødselsdagen! Happy Birthday, Mads! Sorry you had to wait till 6 pm to get it here, but honestly, it's still on time. All the best.

And so it begins…

Hi everyone - this is Jane, webmistress of Mads Fan. A short while ago, Ronnie gave me the privilege of posting on this blog, too. For the time being I'll post whenever I post over on the News section of Mads Fan (which I informally call Mads Blog). Often enough you'll see news here first, because of ongoing publishing glitches that began on my server back during the Toronto International Film Festival. I think it's just a signal that here is where I belong. If you'd like to send me feedback, drop me a line here. Thanks!

I logged into MySpace today to see the Featured Profile (ain't that a duplication of words!) is Casino Royale. And the trailer they show is long - and good. You see loads of Daniel Craig, of course - and it looks like Bond is actually in love, this time, with Bond girl Eva Green - you see Judi Dench looking fabulous and as good as she always is - and Mads, I suspect, is even better.

I was never a Bond junkie, but this I've gotta see.