We are only one weekend into the new fall film season (not counting last week, as “It: Chapter Two” was basically the final summer blockbuster event), and we’ve already seen one big surprise winner and one massive bomb. And people wonder why more studios don’t take chances with prestige dramas? Well, you should probably go ask Warner Bros.
As expected, Warner Bros. had a repeat at #1 with ‘Chapter Two’ dominating the weekend, with a domestic gross of $41 million, leading to a cume of $154 million after 10 days. While these numbers are far below that of the first ‘It’ film, WB is obviously going to be jazzed about the horror sequel still doing big business despite fan excitement and critical reaction being a bit dampened as compared to the last film. That being said, “It: Chapter Two” is far from the most interesting story of the weekend. And for WB, it’s the only bright spot in what was clearly a disappointing weekend.
READ MORE: ‘Hustlers’: Jennifer Lopez & Constance Wu Do What They Gotta Do [TIFF Review]
But before we get to the WB drama, we have to highlight the shockingly great debut from Jennifer Lopez’s newest awards-contender, “Hustlers.” The crime film following a group of exotic dancers that struggle in the wake of the 2008 economic crisis eclipsed even the highest of expectations, posting a great $33 million opening weekend. Considering the Lorene Scafaria film only sports a $20 million production budget, this type of opening is exactly what STX needed to justify its massive marketing and awards season push for the drama. The one negative coming from the film this weekend is the fact that it only scored a ‘B-’ CinemaScore, which could mean that word-of-mouth is going to hurt the future earnings.
That being said, “Hustlers” is kicking off the fall film season with a bang, leading many to wonder what other surprises we might have in store.
Speaking of surprises, but perhaps, not the kind that makes you happy, Warner Bros. released one of its awards contenders this weekend, hoping to be counterprogramming to the horror-filled ‘It’ and loud, sparkly “Hustlers,” with the new film “The Goldfinch.” Based on a massive best-selling novel and a great cast led by Nicole Kidman, “The Goldfinch” seeming had everything going for it. However, one thing that the studio didn’t predict is the lack of audience interest.
Debuting barely in the top 10, at #8, “The Goldfinch” earned a paltry $2.6 million in its opening weekend. How bad is this opening? Well, let’s take a deeper dive and see exactly where “The Goldfinch” ranks amongst the debuts of those involved.
First, you have to understand that the film cost a reported $45 million to produce, which puts it more than double that of “Hustlers.”
For director John Crowley, “The Goldfinch” debuted almost $1.4 million behind the third weekend (first wide release) of his last film “Brooklyn” ($3.9 million) and that film was only seen in 800 screens (versus ‘Goldfinch’s’ 2,500). Nicole Kidman hasn’t seen a wide release debut this low since 2014’s “Before I Go To Sleep.” And “The Goldfinch” now ranks below the opening weekend of “Billy Bathgate” (remember that? Probably not) for the A-lister. The news is worst for Ansel Elgort, the actor who is the lead in the film. His previous low opening was the $16 million that the oft-maligned “Carrie” remake made in 2013. For comparison’s sake, “The Goldfinch” debuted at one-sixth the total. Ouch.
And as you might expect, WB just doesn’t have any defense for this type of showing. Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros.’ president of domestic distribution, said (via Variety), “I think the audience wasn’t interested in seeing this literary work on-screen. There were many things that didn’t work, but the biggest was probably the marketplace. The gap between the have and the have-nots is growing even bigger.”
One thing that Goldstein doesn’t mention is the fact that reviews on the film were abysmal, with the current Rotten Tomatoes score at 25%, and fans only gave the film a ‘B’ CinemaScore. Basically, the future of “The Goldfinch” is going to be a quick decline into oblivion.
The fall film season keeps rolling next weekend with Brad Pitt’s big-budget space drama “Ad Astra,” the highly-anticipated “Downton Abbey” film, and Sylvester Stallone’s “Rambo: Last Blood.” Will Pitt’s film be the next “Hustlers” or “The Goldfinch?” We’ll find out.
