Ahead of ‘GOAT’s release, looking back at Vijay’s past films' advance booking success

Thalapathy Vijay's upcoming film ‘The Greatest of All Time’ aka 'GOAT' has already created a stir by earning around Rs. 5 crore in advance bookings, but this isn't the first time the actor has seen such success. With a career spanning over two decades, Vijay has consistently proven his box office prowess, with his past films raking in impressive numbers through advance bookings.

From 'Leo: Bloody Sweet' to 'Master', Vijay's films have been cashing in on the advance booking trend, setting the stage for a blockbuster opening. As we await the release of 'GOAT', let's take a look back at Vijay's past films and their advance booking success stories.

‘Leo: Bloody Sweet’:

Released in October 2023, Leo: Bloody Sweet reportedly earned over Rs. 100 crore through advanced booking across India. According to Sacnilk, the film’s advance collection came from all languages - Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, and Kannada languages. Its worldwide box office collections are said to be above Rs. 600 crore, making and breaking several records at the ticket window. It became the second highest-grossing Tamil film of all times, and also the highest-grossing Tamil film overseas.

‘Varisu’:

Vijay’s ‘Varisu’ had a clash at the box office with the Ajith Kumar-starrer ‘Thunivu’. Both actors were having their films released on the same day after a gap of eight years. Among the two film’s ‘Varisu’ had an edge over ‘Thunivu’. Per Sacnilk’s report, ‘Varisu’s Tamil version (Telugu and Hindi were released later) earned Rs. 11.49 crore through advance booking while ‘Thunivu’ collected Rs. 10.83 crores. Overall, ‘Varisu’ minted around Rs. 300 crore at the box office, across languages and regions.

‘Beast’:

Starring Vijay as an ex-R&AW agent, ‘Beast’ was opened to mixed reviews but turned out to be a commercial success. Made on a budget of Rs. 130-150 crore, its worldwide collection stood at Rs. 217-300 crore. As per industry tracker Sacnilk, the film earned more than Rs. 27 crore through advance booking, of which Rs. 24 crore came from the Tamil region alone. Directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, ‘Beast’ also featured Pooja Hegde.

‘Master’:

Lokesh Kanagaraj brought together two of the biggest stars of Tamil cinema, Thalapathy Vijay and Vijay Sethupathi, for his 2021 film ‘Master.’ While Thalapathy played the protagonist, Sethupathi was seen as the antagonist. Ticketing website BookMyShow sold nearly a million tickets of the film in advance, despite the fact that it was a post COVID-19 release with capacity restrictions at cinema halls. As per Sacnilk, it collected around Rs. 17 crore in advance at the box office.