MANILA, July 15, 2013 – The colossal showdown between monster aliens and giant robots destroyed the competition, as Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures' “Pacific Rim” grossed a victorious P83.25-million in just 4 days, opening at the top of Philippine box-office for the July 11-14 weekend.

This was announced today by Francis Soliven, General Manager of film's local distributor, Warner Bros. (F.E.), Inc.

“Pacific Rim” marked the year’s second biggest opening for Warner Bros., coming off the record-setting bow of “Man of Steel” last June. The studio also fired up the box-office last February with a No. 1 launch of “Jack the Giant Slayer.”

“`Pacific Rim’ continued the winning streak of Warner, and this bodes well for our remaining slate for 2013,” comments Soliven. “Frequently described as a nostalgic Valentine to fanboys, Guillermo Del Toro’s film has touched the hearts of a generation, while gaining new fans at the same time. It’s rip-roaring, monumental fight scenes and deeply human story have received critical acclaim and excellent word-of-mouth, and we’re excited to see how it will perform at the box office in the coming weeks.”

Warner has every reason to be positive since “Pacific Rim” is tracking higher than recently released movies in the same genre, namely “Wrath of the Titans,” “Real Steel,” “Battleship,” “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” “Terminator Salvation,” “Prometheus,” “War of the Worlds” and “The Day After Tomorrow.”

Bowing in 277 screens nationwide, the futuristic action-adventure recorded the biggest receipts at SM Mall of Asia with a massive P5.89-M , followed by SM North EDSA and Trinoma with P4.93-M and P3.28-M respectively.

Close to their heels are SM Megamall (P2.94-M), SM Cebu (P2.92-M), Glorietta 4 (P2.60-M), Greenbelt 3 (P2.34-M), Power Plant (P1.91-M), Alabang Town Center (P1.87-M) and SM Southmall (P1.85-M).

Also posting impressive grosses are Gateway (P1.78-M), SM Aura (P1.60-M), Eastwood (P1.56-M), Newport (P1.54-M), Theatremall (P1.53-M), Gaisano Davao (P1.36-M), Market! Market! (P1.34-M), Ayala Cebu (P1.32-M), Shang Cineplex (P1.24-M) and SM Fairview (P1.19-M).

In “Pacific Rim,” when legions of monstrous alien creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are synched via a neural bridge, called “The Drift.” But as the enemy grows more powerful with each attack, even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju.

On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot (Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)—who are teamed to drive a seemingly obsolete Jaeger. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

Now showing across the Philippines in IMAX 3D, Digital 3D, 2D and regular theaters, “Pacific Rim” will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

It was essential to the filmmakers of Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures' new action-adventure “Pacific Rim” that the magnitude of the action be balanced with the human stories that are at the heart of the film.

The gallery of memorable human characters in “Pacific Rim” are played by Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Rob Kazinsky, Charlie Day, Bum Gorman and Ron Perlman.

Charlie Hunnam, who stars as Raleigh Becket, one of the brave Jaeger pilots who leads the assault against invading monster aliens called Kaiju, says, “The characters in the film are at the eleventh hour, and the only way they can overcome this colossal danger is by coming together and forgetting all their petty differences, be it nations or creeds or backgrounds, and I think that message will resonate with audiences.”

Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba) had been the commander of the Pan Pacific Defense Corp before the Jaeger Program was cut when the world leaders decided to shift their resources to other forms of defense. Now he leads those who are willing to stand with him in the Resistance. The actor calls his character “a lifelong soldier and a natural born leader. Pentecost will not give up, even though he doesn’t have much to work with against an increasing number of Kaiju attacks. But as a strategist and a soldier, his only job is to figure out how to survive and to win.”

Japanese actress Rinko Kikuchi plays Mako, a young woman who shows tremendous promise as a Jaeger pilot, although she has been held back by forces without and within. Kikuchi says, “Mako has wanted to be a Jaeger pilot ever since her parents were killed in an attack when she was a child. She is battling monsters and her own demons. She has something to prove to herself and to Pentecost, who is her hero and her mentor. He taught her everything she knows, but he still thinks she is too traumatized to join the fight. He wants to protect her and keep her out of harm’s way.”

British actor Rob Kazinsky portrays Chuck Hansen, a Jaeger pilot who “has a definite chip on his shoulder,” the actor admits. “He was raised in a world at war and has lived his entire life to only one end: killing Kaiju. That’s all that matters to him, so he’s demanding to the extreme. I don’t think Chuck means to act like a jerk; he’s behaving that way because he knows his life could depend on someone and doesn’t think he’ll be in safe hands. When he feels someone is going to let the team down when it counts, he doesn’t want them on the team at all.”

Behind the lines, there is another duo who are taking a more scientific approach to fighting the Kaiju by trying to stop the invasion at its source. But it might help if they could first stop fighting with each other.

Charlie Day, who was cast as Dr. Newton Geiszler, remarks, “Newton is obsessed with these monsters and believes he is the foremost expert on them.”

“But he’s not,” counters Burn Gorman, who plays Herman Gottlieb. “Newt thinks the solution is biological, but Herman believes the answer is in his mathematical calculations. There’s a lot of friction between them because they are both searching for a solution to the same problem, but their methods are entirely at odds and both of them think they are always right all of the time. And the clock is ticking.”

While the rest of humanity wants desperately to annihilate the Kaiju, one man has turned the invasion into his own cottage industry. Ron Perlman portrays Hannibal Chau, who has profited handsomely from selling Kaiju parts on the black market and has no intention of helping the Resistance kill his cash cow. “Hannibal loves his creature comforts,” Perlman continues. “He’s a pure hedonist; he likes to be surrounded by rare, exotic things and has allegiance to no one and nothing except his own insatiable appetites. It was a delicious role to play because he is utterly ruthless and unpredictable.”

Opening across the Philippines in July 11 in IMAX 3D, Digital 3D, 2D and regular theaters, “Pacific Rim” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

The depths of the ocean have always held a fascination for people, but we have always assumed that its wonders—and its dangers—are of our own world.

We were wrong.

That intriguing premise gave rise to Warner Bros. Pictures & Legendary Pictures' new action adventure “Pacific Rim.” As the film begins, a breach in the floor of the Pacific Ocean unleashes a cataclysmic threat to the human race.

Director Guillermo del Toro, who also co-wrote and served as a producer on the film, relates, “Through that portal come creatures that are larger and more ferocious and brutal than anything we have ever seen: the Kaiju. In order to grapple with them, mankind pulls together all its resources and invents the largest, most dynamic and most versatile weapon ever devised. They create the Jaeger Program—towering 25-story-high robots, each operated by two pilots whose minds are neurally linked together.”

He continues, “It was a project that encompassed every single thing on my wish list, visually, atmospherically and emotionally…an unstoppable, thrilling adventure about monsters and robots, the likes of which we’ve never seen.”

Producer Thomas Tull offers, “Just that description, ‘giant monsters versus giant robots,’ gives you a sense of the scope and scale, not to mention the action and fun. And there is also an element of mystery in that we don’t know why the Kaiju are attacking. What do they want and how is humanity going to react? How can we possibly defend ourselves against them?”

The story originated with screenwriter Travis Beacham, who was on the actual Pacific Rim—on the coast of California—when the central elements of the film began to take shape. He recounts, “I remember walking along the beach in Santa Monica. It was a particularly foggy morning and there was something about the shape of the pier in the fog jutting out into the water... An image just kind of popped into my head of a behemoth, a monster, rising from the surf to meet this giant robot waiting on the shore to do battle.

“However,” Beacham acknowledges, “I knew that by itself was not a story. What really crystallized the plot for me was figuring out who is driving the robot, and finally determining it had to be two pilots—two people whose minds would have to be intimately connected to control this massive thing. That’s when the pieces started to fall into place in a very organic way.”

After collaborating with producers Thomas Tull and Jon Jashni as a screenwriter on “Clash of the Titans,” Beacham told them about his original idea for a winner-take-all war that joins man and machine against aliens, who don’t invade from beyond our galaxy, but rather ascend from the deep.

“I was hooked from the first moment Travis pitched it to us,” Tull recalls. “The film is about humanity being up against something unexpected and utterly overwhelming, and how they have to come together to combat it. We also thought the notion that we could be invaded from within was a very cool concept.”

“You can’t really run from it because they are coming from a place that’s inescapably on Earth,” Beacham adds. “Part of the allure of the ocean is that it hides its secrets so well. There are so many myths about sea monsters and giant serpents and all the other things people suppose are down there. I think there is something elementally terrifying about what can come out of this blackness.”

As del Toro began crafting the screenplay with Beacham, he became totally immersed in the world they were forming. He attests, “The more we developed the universe, the more I became personally invested in the story, the characters, the monsters, the robots, and everything it would take to make it all real. I couldn’t wait.”

“Working with Guillermo is incredible,” Beacham remarks. “He bristles with ideas and can come up with the most brilliant strokes of insight at the drop of a hat. He also loves monster movies, so we were definitely playing in his sandbox,” he laughs. “He came at the project with a genuine passion for the material, which I think was vital to the soul of the movie.”

Del Toro’s enthusiasm was not only contagious to everyone involved in the film, but is also largely the reason he has become an unequivocal favorite among genre fans. In fact, he would be the first to count himself among those collectively known as “fanboys.”

Producer Mary Parent says, “Guillermo has a special connection to that audience because he is that audience, and that makes a huge difference. He is just as excited about creating these amazing worlds as we are to see them. You know, going in, he’s going to deliver a visceral, thrilling rollercoaster.”

Opening across the Philippines in July 11 in IMAX 3D, Digital 3D, 2D and regular theaters, “Pacific Rim” will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Manila once again gets special mention, this time in the main trailer of Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures' “Pacific Rim.”

As narrated in the trailer, which can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYk7PwTg4wU, Manila is the second city to be attacked by alien-like sea monsters originating in the Pacific Ocean. Scenes pertaining to the Manila attack are also featured, which are expected to create a sensation when the film opens locally in July.

In “Pacific Rim,” when legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge.

But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)—who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

The film stars Charlie Hunnam (TV’s “Sons of Anarchy”), Idris Elba (“Thor”), Rinko Kikuchi (“The Brothers Bloom”), Charlie Day (“Horrible Bosses”), and Ron Perlman (the “Hellboy” films).

Opening across the Philippines in July 11 in 3D, 2D and regular theaters, “Pacific Rim” will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Due to persistent clamor, director Guillermo del Toro has agreed to release the WonderCon footage of his upcoming giant-monsters-vs-giant-robots film “Pacific Rim” which can be viewed at Warner Bros.' Philippines YouTube channel at http://youtu.be/iK9Vgn0OD3U.

“This was originally intended for only WonderCon,” said del Toro in a statement, “but after listening to so many of you asking for more of the movie online, I think it time for me to show you more footage. Enjoy, my friends!”

The response to the footage at this year's WonderCon was overwhelmingly positive. As Charlie Day‘s character says, it’s “2,500 tons of awesome.”

In “Pacific Rim,” when legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge.

But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)—who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

The film stars Charlie Hunnam (TV’s “Sons of Anarchy”), Idris Elba (“Thor”), Rinko Kikuchi (“The Brothers Bloom”), Charlie Day (“Horrible Bosses”), and Ron Perlman (the “Hellboy” films).

Opening across the Philippines in July 11 in 3D, 2D and regular theaters, “Pacific Rim” will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.