In a new press release it has been announced that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has broken yet another record in addition to its recordbreaking midnight showing!

Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” has already shattered two box office records, first breaking the record for a midnight opening with $22.2 million, eclipsing the studio’s own record set last year by “The Dark Knight.” “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” then flew past the worldwide opening day box office record: with the domestic gross of $58.18 million and the international totals of $45.85 million combining for an astounding one-day global box office gross of more than $104 million.

Fellman said, “We are so happy to share ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince’ with the fans and thrilled that they turned out in record numbers to see it.”

Alan Horn, President and Chief Operating Officer, Warner Bros., stated, “Quite simply, we owe this record-breaking opening to the remarkable fans who have stood by us and who stood in line to be among the first to see ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.’ We thank them again for their patience and we hope they agree with us that the film was well worth the wait.”

Variety is now reporting that in addition to its recordbreaking midnight showing, Half-Blood Prince has also made a lot of money on their first day!

…grossed a magical $58.4 million from 4,275 theaters as it opened Wednesday at the domestic B.O., including a potent $22.2 million in midnight shows.

Forecasts for the five-day opening vary. Some are predicting “Half-Blood Prince” would post a five-day domestic opening of $125 million to $150 million, while others put it higher.

Film Score Monthly has an interview with composer Nicholas Hooper (who did the soundtrack for Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince.  In it he states that he will not return to score Deathly Hallows.  He also says he hopes that John Williams will return to finish out the series.

I actually decided I wouldn’t [return]. It impinged on my life and my family too much to do it again. We managed to cope with two of them, and I just felt it was time to hand it on…”

Read the whole interview in the latest issue! Thanks Leaky.

While promoting Half-Blood Prince James and Oliver Phelps talked about Harry Potter, duh ;).

You were 14 when you were on the audition, what you thought about the books then?
Oliver: I had read all that had come out at the time, Goblet of Fire was the last. It was slightly surreal because when you read, you can see the characters for themselves in the head and I saw James for me and I like Fred and George because we were twins. And when we started filming I was that I began to see me for the cast as Dan, as Emma, as Rupert and all the others, and so did I still when I read Deathly Hallows two years ago. – The difference is only that when you read that they go from the story to living through the corridors, for me as it is to exit a scene, over the parking lot and into another. It is quite strange.
Why exactly were you were chosen?
James: Janet Hudson said she had raised eyebrows as soon as we entered the door. I think we had the look they were after.
Oliver: We had a test in front of the camera not long after with the director Chris Columbus, who was American. He asked who of us who would win a “fight”. “Fight” on the U.S. means a discussion, while in the UK means the fist fight.
James: … So I said “I would win, I have a pretty good left hook”, and he not only understood what I was talking about. There was much that was new for us in the beginning.

Thanks to SS for the quotes.

If you recall, yesterday BBC Radio 1 got the chance to walk around the set of Deathly Hallows. There are a bunch of new photos and also a few videos that you can see below, photos here.

Thanks for all the info SS!

A video of Rupert on the early show can now be found online, watch it below!

Watch CBS Videos Online