Disney may rule the film industry and control most major franchises that you know and love, but that doesn’t mean the studio is perfect. Every now and then, the Mouse House releases a stinker at the box office, proving that even with all the money in the world and the most recognizable IP, Disney is flawed, just like any other studio. We saw that earlier this year, when the studio released the live-action “Dumbo,” which in just about two months of release, has only grossed $113 million domestically. So, the Memorial Day weekend launch of Disney’s latest remake, “Aladdin,” was far from a guaranteed hit.
That being said, Disney is Disney. And you really didn’t think they’d have two flops in a row, did you?
With a ton of marketing and press leading up to the release of Guy Ritchie’s live-action “Aladdin,” combined with decent reviews, Disney can breathe a sigh of relief during the holiday weekend, as their film is set to earn an estimated $112.7 million over the long frame. And yes, that means that in four days, “Aladdin” is set to earn just a hair under the total domestic gross for “Dumbo.” Sorry to say, but the live-action remake train just keeps chugging along.
Going into the long weekend, analysts had predicted that “Aladdin” would do decently, but likely well below $100 million over four days. The negative buzz that surrounded the first trailer, and early glimpses of star Will Smith’s Genie character, specifically, threatened to turn Disney’s live-action remake into another dud for the studio. But you truly can never count out nostalgia, and the first weekend seemed to be powered by the “Aladdin” brand, which is often included with “The Lion King” and “The Little Mermaid” as the best Disney films of that ‘90s era of classic animated films.
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As mentioned, “Aladdin” really didn’t have the overwhelming support of critics, with the film currently holding a 58% Rotten Tomatoes score (riding the line between Fresh and Rotten). But that didn’t deter those ‘90s kids, many with children of their own, who flocked to see the film and gave it a super solid ‘A’ CinemaScore, which leads us to believe that Will Smith’s latest film will do just fine in the weeks ahead.
Internationally, the film earned another $121 million in its opening frame overseas. That is, of course, in a three-day weekend. So, all told, the film has done a solid $207 million over the first three days. Not terrible, at all. It would appear that “Aladdin” is doing the job of priming the live-action remake pump in time for “The Lion King” to rule all later this summer.
As Memorial Day weekend is a big movie-going time, other studios decided to open some films to wide release as “counter-programming.” Sadly, for those studios, “Aladdin” overperforming meant that smaller films like “Brightburn” and “Booksmart” underperformed.
The James Gunn-produced “Brightburn” attempted to meld superhero storytelling with horror and earned a four-day gross of approximately $9.5 million. Sure, the film is said to carry a budget in the single-digit millions, but you have to believe that Screen Gems was hoping that the film would ride the James Gunn name to a bigger opening. However, when critics give the film a 57% Rotten Tomatoes score, the fanboys and fangirls take notice. Plus, while CinemaScore didn’t grade the audience reaction, other sources have said that opening night fans were underwhelmed with “Brightburn” and its inversion of the classic Superman origin story. Long story short, the fans that will gladly support superhero films only do so when the quality is up to par, and “Brightburn” just isn’t a great superhero film nor a good horror film. And middle of the road just ain’t gonna cut it.
“Booksmart,” on the other hand, had nothing but critical support and buzz going into its debut this weekend. Sadly, the film just wasn’t able to turn the corner from critical darling into a mainstream comedic blockbuster. Earning only $8.7 million over four days, the Olivia Wilde-directed comedy couldn’t truly capitalize on the incredible 98% Rotten Tomatoes score and turn into the breakout film of the weekend. Audiences seem to enjoy the film, as well with a ‘B+’ CinemaScore, so perhaps Annapurna can hope for a decent hold in the upcoming weeks. But at this point, it appears that marketing folks and box office analysts will have to figure out who to point the finger at, in an attempt to deduce just why arguably one of the best comedies in recent years wasn’t able to truly find its audience. Do yourself a favor and go see the film, if you haven’t already. It’s easily the best of the new releases.
As for the holdovers, “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” kept up a decent hold in its second weekend, earning a respectable $31 million over the four-day holiday weekend. But really, the big news surrounding the Keanu Reeves franchise is that after only 11 days, ‘Parabellum’ has not only become the biggest ‘Wick’ film domestically, but also internationally. Now, with a reported $182 million worldwide, the ‘John Wick’ franchise is now a true blockbuster and not just the spunky little guy that comes around every couple of years and surprises folks. Lionsgate has a true mega-franchise on its hands and it’ll be interesting to see how the studio reacts for its already-announced 2021 fourth installment. Will the studio double the budget, going bigger than ever before, in an attempt to reach even bigger numbers? Or will the folks behind the scenes keep the moderate budget and lowered expectations and hope for the best? We shall find out.
The other major film to cross a milestone this weekend is “Avengers: Endgame.” Now, after five weekends, the latest Marvel Studios film has earned an incredible $803 million domestically, becoming only the second film ever to do so, behind “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” (which also crossed $900 million in 2015, finishing with $936 million). This is likely the last major milestone domestically for the film, as it begins to sputter out amongst the massive competition. That being said, the film still managed another $22.3 million in its four-day holiday run this weekend, good for #3 in the domestic box office. But $900 million seems like it’ll be an impossible feat, at this point.
What is still very much possible, but not guaranteed, is the worldwide record. While three weeks ago, people were saying that $3 billion worldwide was all but certain, I said that we shouldn’t be so optimistic, and it appears that is going to be the case. “Avengers: Endgame” has earned a massive $2.683 billion worldwide, but is still just about $105 million from “Avatar” and its $2.788 billion record. At this point, it looks like the film will likely beat “Avatar,” or at the very least come really damn close to it. But any sort of $3 billion result is almost certainly out of range.
The real question is how bad Disney wants the record. With the Fox merger, the Mouse House owns “Avatar” and the record, so it’s not like Disney is taking down a competitor. However, this sort of record is likely not to be broken again anytime soon, so maybe the studio wants the headlines. If that’s the case, Disney could easily cross that mark with a massive re-release of the film in the next few weeks, right before “Spider-Man: Far From Home” hits theaters. If the Russos have even 4 or 5 minutes worth of deleted scenes they can throw in, fans will likely flock to the cinemas one more time to support the film that has already done so much.
Switching gears, and looking at the indie/limited releases of the weekend, there’s a pretty major surprise that seemingly no one saw coming – “Echo in the Canyon.” The documentary about the ‘60s folk-rock movement in California opened in 2 theaters in Los Angeles over the weekend with a reported per-theater-average of $58,826 for the three-day weekend. In a shocking turn of events, ‘Echo’ has a PTA that is second best in 2019, behind only the opening weekend for ‘Endgame.’ Clearly, it’s the biggest PTA of any indie/documentary of 2019, and by a large margin. So, if you’re in LA right now, you might want to go check it out and see what the fuss is all about.
Here’s the entire domestic Top 10 for May 24 to May 27:
(Note: these are 4-day totals for the Memorial Day weekend)
1. Aladdin – $112.7M (Debut)
2. John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum – $31M ($108M Overall)
3. Avengers: Endgame – $22.3M ($803M)
4. Pokemon Detective Pikachu – $17M ($120M)
5. Brightburn – $9.5M (Debut)
6. Booksmart – $8.7M (Debut)
7. A Dog’s Journey – $5.5M ($16.4M)
8. The Hustle – $4.8M ($31M)
9. The Intruder – $2.6M ($32.6M)
10. Long Shot – $2.1M ($29M)