2017 In Rewind: Best And Worst Of The 2017 Box Office

Worst: Paramount has a year to forget
In hindsight, Brad Grey did not leave his successor, Jim Gianopulos, a lot to work with. Consistent franchise moneymakers such as “Transformers: The Last Knight” disappointed. “Baywatch” didn’t launch a franchise and “xXx: The Return of Xander Cage” only seemed to justify Vin Diesel’s box office clout in China (which is honestly impressive).  “Ghost in the Shell” was a public relations and box office disaster, and “Monster Trucks” was a bomb that was on the shelf for almost two years. “Daddy’s Home 2” will break even, but it’s not even close to the hit the first film was. And then we get to the studio’s well-intentioned but disappointing prestige slate. “mother!,” “Suburbicon” and “Downsizing” were all financial bombs (although it appears “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power” was a modest financial success). The year was so bad Paramount has earned less domestically than Lionsgate which only had one 2017 release take in over $100 million. Right now, Paramount studio only has nine releases set for 2018 with “Mission: Impossible 6” likely the only guaranteed hit, there are also two questionable horror titles and an “untitled event film” for November. That seems daunting, but perhaps they’ll find a winner or two at Sundance…

blankBest: “Wonder” is the surprise of the year
The trailer for the Julia Roberts and Jacob Trembly drama “Wonder” seemingly made it smell like a bomb, but it certainly wasn’t. Fans of the best-selling book showed up in droves as did moviegoers intrigued by the film’s “Be Kind” motto, something most welcome when your President is insulting everyone and anyone on an hourly basis. The movie cost just a reported $20 million but has earned $113 million* domestically and $174.4 million* worldwide. It’s Lionsgate’s most profitable movie of the year (and they needed it after “Power Rangers” misfired) and is Robert’s biggest hit since “Ocean’s Twelve” 13 years ago.

blankBest: “Girls Trip” launches a franchise…wait…
The Universal comedy transformed Tiffany Haddish into a legitimate star (and critics group winner) and gave the studio the only hit comedy of the summer. It earned $115 million in the U.S. and, sadly, just $139 million worldwide (the former reinforcing studio thinking that POC doesn’t sell overseas unless the person of color is Will Smith, Vin Diesel or Dwayne Johnson). But with a $19 million production budget, it was a smash based on the domestic results alone. The question for the sequel is whether…wait, a sequel hasn’t been announced yet?  It’s been five months since release and there hasn’t even been a hint of discussions about getting Haddish, Queen Latifah, Regina Hall and Jada Pinkett-Smith back together, even in another movie playing different characters. That seems strange, doesn’t it?

blankWorst: “Blade Runner 2049” cost too much
Critics loved it and the audiences who showed up did too, but Denis Villeneuve’s “Blade Runner 2049” simply cost too much. The unexpected sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1982 classic earned $91.5 million in the U.S. and $258 million worldwide. In most cases for an R-rated, prestige sci-fi flick, that would be considered a significant success.  Unfortunately, the film reportedly cost $150 million and the financial shortcoming (it’s going to wind up losing producers upwards of $80 million) has tainted its artistic achievement. No one was expecting a third “Blade Runner” anytime soon, but there were certainly fans wanting to cheer its success. Because now, even after Villeneuve’s “Arrival,” studio execs will sadly use the financial failure of ‘2049’ as a reason not to greenlight smart sci-fi films.

blankBest: “How To Be A Latin Lover” is the big hit you probably haven’t heard about
Lionsgate and Pantelion Films have had a number of hits with their original Hispanic targeted films this decade, but it has been awhile since they had one in the vein of “Instructions Not Included” ($44 million in the U.S.).  That changed when the star of “Instructions,” Eugenio Derbez, returned with “How To Be A Latin Lover.” The summer comedy took in $32.1 million domestically and $61.8 million worldwide off just a $10 million production budget. While the movie featured appearances by Rob Lowe, Salma Hayek, and Kristen Bell, you probably didn’t hear about it unless you saw it playing at your local multiplex. Pantelion is now counting on lightning striking three times for Derbez. Next year he stars in their remake of “Overboard” with Anna Faris. The trailer has gotten mixed notices on social media, but Pantelion is hoping its target audience goes for Derbez, and turns it into a hit.

blankBest: Terrible movies bomb
No one wishes for failure at the box office except when you hope it convinces studios to stop making bad movies. This past year Hollywood couldn’t conjure up any marketing trickery to turn uninspired fare such as “Geostorm,” “Jeepers Creepers 3,” “Underworld: Blood Wars,” “Life,” “Rings,” “The Dark Tower,” “Power Rangers” “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” or “Monster Trucks,” among others, into anything close to a hit. We can dream that it will convince Hollywood to stop aiming for the lowest common denominator, but we’re also quite aware that’s probably too much to ask for.