'Leo' worldwide box office update Day 1: Thalapathy Vijay-starrer expected to earn Rs 145 cr-Rs 150 cr

Thalapathy Vijay's 'Leo' is all set for release on October 19 and the movie has already earned Rs 100 crore gross in advance booking in India. 

"LEO crosses 100 Cr Advance Booking Gross in India [All Days, All Languages]," posted movie industry tracker Sacnilk on X platform (formerly Twitter).

Sacnilk also pegged the action movie's first day worldwide box office collection to be Rs 145 crore-Rs 150 crore.

Sacnilk said the thriller might earn Rs 32 crore in Tamil Nadu on Day 1 despite the state government not allowing early morning shows, Rs 12.5 crore in Kerala, Rs 14.5 crore in Karnataka, Rs 17 crore in the Telugu states and Rs 4 crore in rest of the country. Total India gross is likely to be Rs 80 crore while Rs 65 crore could be earned from overseas markets, said Sacnilk adding that if the word of mouth turns out to be 'great', it could even earn Rs 150 crore. Sacnilk also predicted that 'Leo' will become first ever film to take a double digit opening in each of the four South Indian states (with Andhra and Telangana being clubbed into one).

Like Tamil Nadu government, the neighbouring Puducherry government also refused to allow early morning shows of the movie. 

The movie will be shown only after 9 am, said the local administration. 

However, Vijay's fans can rejoice that their favourite actor can post higher Day 1 box office numbers as the Telugu version of the Lokesh Kanagaraj-directorial is all set for release on October 19 as planned.

'Leo' is all set for an October 19 release, producer S Naga Vamsi has confirmed at a press conference in Hyderabad. He holds the distribution rights of the film in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The confirmation came a day after the city civil court in Hyderabad had stalled the screening of Leo till October 20 before dismissing the suit on Wednesday after an out-of-court settlement.

To ensure a grand movie-watching experience for fans, Seven Screen Studios Production, the production house of 'Leo', approached the Tamil Nadu government to allow early morning shows after Madras High Court asked it to reconsider the request. The production house had requested 4 am and 7 am shows on October 19 and 7 am shows from October 20 to October 24. The government refused and said the first show can only begin at 9 am. 

However, the government issued an order stating that theatres could screen five shows per day as opposed to the four shows per day. The makers cited the 2.45 hour duration of the film for being unable to accommodate the 5 shows within the stipulated time.

A few prominent theatres in Chennai, including the famous Rohini Theatre, informed Vijay's fans that they are not screening 'Leo' because they couldn't reach an agreement with the distributors. There are reports of producer demanding 80% share from sale of tickets as against the usual 60%. 

‘Leo’ marks a reunion between Vijay and Lokesh Kanagaraj after the 2021 release 'Master'. The film also reunites Vijay with Trisha Krishnan. They earlier starred together in films like ‘Ghilli’, ‘Kuruvi’, ‘Thirupaachi’ and ‘Aathi’. Sanjay Dutt and Arjun are also part of the action-thriller.