The headlines were serious. Robert Zemeckis’ new film received poor reviews from audiences and a B CinemaScore here Opening in 2,642 theaters in North America over the weekend of November 1-3, the film opened to just $4.8 million, despite the chance to see the veteran director’s Oscar-winning film with Tom Hanks and Robin Wright What an exciting opportunity to reunite with the stars for the first time since the film Forrest Gump Thirty years ago.
All major studios inherit and produce here When Miramax purchased this intergenerational metaphysical drama. Miramax sold the foreign rights and struck a distribution deal with Sony TriStar, but Sony had no money on the $45 million film.
Competition for fall movies aimed at older consumers is just too fierce. But the demo wasn’t entirely made up of regular moviegoers. Instead, older generations have become accustomed to watching new films at home relatively quickly after their theatrical release, thanks to shortened screen times and the rise of streaming in the post-pandemic world. So when these viewers decide to show up, they pay close attention to what their critics are saying. (More than 45% of the audience supports secret meeting and here Over 55, this is an unheard of statistic.
Awards contenders Edward Berger and Focus Features are a case in point secret meeting It is one of the few adult dramas that is a hit nationwide. Riding on rave reviews and a B+ CinemaScore, the film debuted to $6.6 million last weekend hereis the best of a slew of fall festival films that are rapidly declining at the box office, including those from Jason Reitman and Sony saturday night live love letter saturday night and the anti-Donald Trump doctor. apprentice. And then there’s Francis Ford Coppola’s Bombshell MegacityIt had a budget of $120 million and global revenue of $13 million. secret meeting even beat here In its second weekend, box office revenue fell just 20% to $5.3 million from 1,796 theaters.
Comscore’s Paul Dergarabedian said: “There has certainly been a distinct malaise in director-led cinema of late, with a string of films from some of the most famous and iconic film directors experiencing apathy from audiences in this challenging market environment. .
The box office analyst added: “A movie like this Megacity and hereFor moviegoers whose target audience is mature, who have struggled to inspire the necessary “want to see” factor to convert awareness into actual movie viewing, box office has suffered under this harsh reality.
here Could learn a lesson or two from Clint Eastwood Juror #2.
Given the coming-of-age drama landscape, Warner Bros. Discovery took a different tack, deciding from the start to make a courtroom thriller for Max, and Eastwood agreed.
The film also opens the weekend of November 1-3 here After being selected as the closing night of the AFI Film Festival, it played in a handful of cities across the U.S., but anyone curious how it came to be has no answer since it was only an awards qualifier and no box office receipts were reported. According to industry insiders, the show is showing in about 35 theaters. The film has been screened by some critics and has a 91% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, prompting box office bloggers to predict that Warners will definitely change its mind and give the film an actual theatrical release.
According to many interviewees hollywood reporterthat is impossible. The film, starring Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, JK Simmons and Paul Bettany, is still scheduled to be sent to Max over the Christmas holidays (the streamer has yet to announce an exact date).
The film’s budget was reportedly less than $35 million; a nationwide release would add tens of millions of dollars in marketing costs.
After “The Popcorn Project,” theaters and streaming media are a sensitive topic for WBD. All 2021 movies are in theaters and on Max on double days.
But growing its subscriber base is a top goal for WBD CEO David Zaslav — and for rivals with streaming services — and Clint Eastwood ‘s movie might make a tempting Christmas gift, like salem lot Was. Making the film awards-eligible might please Eastwood (the prolific Eastwood is a beloved figure at Warner Bros.). No official announcement has ever been made Juror #2 This was the first film he made for Max that wasn’t a theatrical film.
Warner is showing Juror #2 Opening in eight overseas markets where Eastwood is the beloved director, including France (where the film has grossed $5 million from six markets). While he is admired in the United States as a director, his recent films have performed better when he also stars, although his last film was 2021’s crying manhoodthe world’s highest selling price is less than US$17 million. 2019 Richard JewellHis film Star Wars was also a major disappointment, grossing $44 million at the global box office. Same in 2018 15:17 Head to Paris. (Of these three films, he only starred in the first.)
Prior to that, he had a string of notable victories, to name just a few: mule, american sniper, Gran Turin – all of which he starred in – and defilestarring Hanks.
By avoiding a theatrical release, Eastwood and Warners can avoid any negative publicity that Zemeckis and Hanks had to endure here should Juror #2 Already disappointed.
But not everyone believes the verdict is final Juror #2fate.
“Movies like this Juror #2 Thanks to the generally positive reviews for the legendary Clint Eastwood’s latest and possibly final film, it will finally be a success and, in this rather slow market for pre- and post-election dramas, could build on more than just audience and box office. “That being said, Juror #2 There’s no doubt it’s a strong attraction for Max, offering discerning moviegoers the chance to watch great adult drama from the comfort of their living rooms. From a creative perspective, there’s no doubt that the big screen is still the best place to watch these types of movies, but ultimately it has to make strategic and financial sense. This is not an easy problem to calculate.
