The critics might be conflicted about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, but moviegoers certainly weren’t; Peter Jackson’s  new trilogy got off to a fine start this weekend, earning $84.8 million in North America and another $138.2 million overseas to dominate the global box office and leave everything else in the dust.

How far ahead of the pack was The Hobbit? Well, Rise of the Guardians took second place with $7.4 million — less than a tenth of what Jackson’s movie made. Lincoln and Skyfall were close behind with $7.2 million and $7 million, respectively, but this weekend was all about Tolkien.

Whether it’ll continue to dominate once Jack Reacher, This Is 40,  Les Miserables and every other Christmas movie opens in the next week or so — and once word of mouth has some time to circulate — is the real question.