The world is still in love with “Toy Story 5.” After a mammoth opening, the Pixar sequel pulled in another $70 million for $297 million domestic and a staggering $585 million worldwide so far. That 10-day tally is super impressive and, barring jarring competition from “Minons & Monsters,” signals that a $1 billion global gross is on the table. Despite that impressive news, that wasn’t the biggest story of the weekend. That would belong to the disappointing debut of “Supergirl.”
READ MORE: “Supergirl” Review: Milly Alcock’s Rebel Girl Is A Welcome Jolt Of Attitude In A Largely Formulaic Intergalactic Quest
The second official DC Studios theatrical release, “Supergirl” opened to just $38 million in the U.S. and $68 million globally. Out of context, that’s pretty solid for a secondary superhero character. The problem is that the action flick cost at least $170 million, with some reports estimating a price tag closer to $200 million. The Craig Gillespie-directed flick will need exceptional holds to come close to breaking even. And that’s counting ancillaries. With a B- CinemaScore, a “rotten” Rotten Tomatoes score, and an under 50 grade on Metacritic, that may be hard to pull off.
There will be a ton of second-guessing on the Warner Bros. lot and all over town regarding this result. Especially after Warner Bros. touted a $100 million promotional campaign with over 80 different partners (essentially massive, free marketing). The awareness was there. But, shockingly, the warning signs were also. It’s not every day a tentpole release estimate begins to fall in the three-week studio tracking window. Initially, services estimated a $53 million first weekend frame. Instead of rising, as most films do as the media spend increases before opening, it began to collapse. This scenario is not completely unheard of, but incredibly rare.
The fact that it has only been a year since “Superman” might have been part of the problem. And that should be worrisome for director and DC Studios co-chairman James Gunn. The filmmaker is currently in production on the “Superman” follow-up, “Man of Tomorrow,” arriving next summer. It may make more sense, no matter how happy they are with the end product, for Warner Bros. to push it a year to increase anticipation. This also puts substantial pressure on Gunn and Peter Safron’s next DC Studios title, “Clayface,” dropping in October to succeed.
Another relative disappointment was Paramount’s “Jackass: Best and Last.” The seemingly final go-around for the “Jackass” crew opened to just $8.4 million domestic and $10.3 million worldwide. That was substantially under the $14 million U.S. debut studio tracking predicted earlier in the week. That being said, at a reported $10 million production cost and with a great A- CinemaScore, the film should recoup its negative cost in theaters. It just isn’t on track to be the cash cow that the first five movies were.
Notably, Olivia Wilde’s “The Invite” opened on seven screens in New York and Los Angeles, grossing $379,000. The $54,158 per is the fourth-best limited release per screen of the year so far. Two other A24 releases, “The Moment” and “Pillion,” found $106,000 and $60,000 per screen, respectively, earlier this winter. Last weekend, “Maddie’s Secret” took in $58,200 on just “one” screen at the IFC Center in New York. Earning fantastic reviews – 80 on Metacritic, 94% on Rotten Tomatoes – the Sundance Film Festival world premiere is hoping to corner the alternative summer fare market as it expands before a nationwide drop on July 10.
Among other releases, “Disclosure Day” hit $94.3 million domestic and $193.6 million worldwide. “Backrooms” climbed to $184.1 million in the U.S. and $330 million globally. And Focus Features’ “Obsession” remained in the top three at the box office with another $9.8 million for $233.9 million domestic and $370.1 million worldwide.
Oh, and Antoine Fuqua’s “Michael” becomes the highest-grossing biopic of all time, surpassing Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” with $977 million worldwide.
New movies arriving over the next week include “Minions & Monsters” on July 1 and the horror flick “Thrash” on July 4.
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