1917 Tops UK And Irish Box Office On Opening Weekend

War flick 1917 has had a stormer of a weekend at the box office, followed by picking up a clutch of Oscar nominations. Not bad, eh?

The World War I movie, written and directed by Sam Mendes, topped the UK and Irish box office on its opening weekend, pulling in £7,344,868.

The movie is set in northern France and focuses on two young British soldiers, named Schofield (played by George MacKay) and Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman).

A synopsis reads: "Two young British soldiers during the First World War are given an impossible mission: deliver a message deep in enemy territory that will stop 1,600 men, and one of the soldier's brothers, from walking straight into a deadly trap."

Alongside MacKay and Chapman, the film stars Sherlock actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Andrew Scott as well as Richard Madden (Bodyguard).

Kezia Williams, Managing Director, UK, Film for eOne said "On behalf of the whole team at eOne, we are absolutely thrilled to see 1917 achieve such a fantastic result at the UK box office this weekend.

"What a heartening demonstration of the health of the cinema industry and testament to the power of the big screen experience. Our congratulations to Sam, Pippa and the whole filmmaking team on an extraordinary and hugely well-deserved achievement."

Universal Pictures

And if topping the UK box office wasn't good enough news for the cast and crew, 1917 has also earned itself a number of Oscar nominations this afternoon - including best Original Screenplay, best Directing and the coveted Best Picture award.

It's also nominated for a bunch of BAFTAs, including Best Film, Outstanding British Film, Director and Original Score. Nicely done.

Earlier this month, it scooped Best Film at the Golden Globes.

The movie, which has drawn comparisons to Saving Private Ryan, was shot to appear as one long scene, something which Mendes admits wasn't easy.

Mendes told Total Film that many of the scenes took 'hundreds of takes - literally' to get right.

He added: "There were days when you were like, 'Why did I do this to myself?'"

Well, it certainly seems like all the hard work paid off.

Topics: TV and Film

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

@ClaireReid19