'Slumdog' breaks through $200m barrier

'Slumdog Millionaire' has smashed the $200m (€157m) mark in global box office takings - making a mammoth $185m (€145m) profit since its release.

The film, directed by Danny Boyle, has been given a huge box office boost since it swept the board at the Oscars in February, winning eight out of the ten Academy Awards it was nominated for.

The movie has seen the biggest post-Oscars push since James Cameron's 'Titanic' in 1997 - falling just $3m (€2.3m) short of the $15.2m (€12m) Titanic took after the prizegiving.

The unexpected indie hit, which cost $15m (€11.8m) to make, tells the tale of a young man from the Mumbai, India slums who goes on to win the country's version of TV quiz show 'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire'.

Bosses at Fox Searchlight, the studio behind the movie, expect the film to make even more during its prolonged cinema run - insisting it could go as far as the $250m (€197m) mark.

The studio's Steve Gilula told Variety: "It's extraordinary. Very, very few films get past $200m worldwide."