NEW YORK, USA (AP) — Moviegoers satiated their appetite for the Hunger Games franchise by making the sequel Catching Fire one of the year’s biggest hits.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire opened with US$161.1 million at the domestic weekend box office, according to studio estimates yesterday.

It became the biggest November debut ever, as well as Lionsgate’s most lucrative opening.

The result fell short of some expectations and failed to dethrone the year’s biggest box-office opening, Iron Man 3 with US$174 million. But the film opened massively worldwide, taking in a total of US$307.7 million.

The marketplace largely ceded the weekend to Catching Fire. The only other new wide release was Disney’s Vince Vaughn comedy Delivery Man, which sputtered to an US$8.2 million opening.

The box-office performance for Catching Fire establishes Hunger Games, starring Jennifer Lawrence as the archer heroine of Suzanne Collins’ young adult series, as among the elite franchises in movies. The budget nearly doubled from the original and Francis Lawrence took over directing duties from Gary Ross. Catching Fire received better reviews and drew a broader audience.