Joaquin Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck in Joker: Folie à Deux.
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Warner Bros. made a big move with Joker: Folie à Deux. I ended up feeling really empty.
After Joker became a $1 billion hit on a shoestring budget of $55 million in 2019, the studio greenlit the sequel and offered director Todd Phillips a hefty $200 million budget. did. As of Wednesday, the film had earned just $53.8 million domestically, according to ComScore. As of Sunday, worldwide revenue had reached $166 million, with an update expected over the weekend.
Joker: A Folie à Deux, which has been panned by critics and audiences alike, is unlikely to recoup much of its expensive production costs and estimated additional $100 million in marketing and distribution costs by the end of its theatrical run. It is expected that it will not be possible.
And this isn’t the only big movie to disappoint at the box office this year.
Other studios, including Warner Bros., Universal, Lionsgate and even Sony, have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on franchises and star-studded ensembles, only to see ticket sales slump.
Of course, this is not uncommon in the theater industry.
“A combination of hits and misses has been the hallmark of the box office year,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at ComScore. “However, 2024 presented a variety of unique challenges to both film production and release schedules, creating an imperfect storm that led to a series of creative and financial failures.”
Moreover, such misfires could spook investors as Hollywood grapples with a growing streaming market and more fickle moviegoers.
“Before the rise of streaming, there seemed to be a clearer picture of a film’s financial performance than in recent years,” said Sean Robbins, Fandango’s director of film analysis.
Streaming has allowed Hollywood to shorten theatrical release windows and get films to the domestic market much faster than before. This means that potential moviegoers who are wondering whether to watch a movie or watch it now will have less time to wait until they can watch it from their couch on the streaming service they already subscribe to. Masu. And if the movie gets bad reviews, audiences are even less motivated to go to the theater.
“This change in dynamics and business models could raise questions about what box office revenue to budget ratios qualify as losses and which do not,” Robbins said. “Certainly, some numbers are easy to identify as glaring financial misfires without much discussion. Others are less obvious to recognize in a constantly evolving global market. There are also numbers.”
For example, a $200 million budget streaming movie is considered a success by the studio if it gets enough views. On the other hand, if a $200 million movie is released in theaters but does not do well at the box office, it is likely to be considered a failure. This is especially true considering that studios also typically spend half of the production budget on marketing and promotions, and split ticket revenue with theaters.
For companies like Netflix, Apple and Amazon, which have larger cushions and traditionally risk-tolerant stakeholders, investors may not be swayed by big-budget movies being streamed straight out of the box. I don’t know. But for traditional media companies that have long traded box office success, shareholders still want a big return on investment in theaters.
Here’s a look at some of the biggest box office disappointments of 2024 so far, based on IMDb’s estimated production budgets and comScore’s box office numbers to date.
“Joker: Folie à deux”
Estimated production budget: $200 million World box office receipts: $166 million Release date: October 4, 2024
Warner Bros.’ “Joker: Folie à Deux” was initially predicted to gross nearly $70 million in its first few days in theaters, but it fell short of expectations for its opening weekend earlier this month, making it a domestic hit. Only $37.6 million was secured.
The movie begins with Arthur Fleck arrested in “Joker” and awaiting trial at Arkham State Hospital. Audiences couldn’t relate to the sequel, which featured Lady Gaga playing a version of Harley Quinn and her musical talents in many scenes.
Joker: Folie à Deux had the biggest second-week decline of any DC Studios film, dropping a whopping 81%.
For comparison, its predecessor grossed $96.2 million in its opening weekend and $248.4 million worldwide in its first three days.
“Joker: Folie à Deux” failed to bring back its most loyal fans or inspire new moviegoers to visit theaters. Critics have widely panned the film, currently holding a 33% rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes and a rare “D” rating on CinemaScore.
“Borderlands”
Estimated production budget: $115 million World box office receipts: $32.9 million Release date: August 9, 2024
In an effort to capitalize on the popularity of movies based on video games, Lionsgate spent $115 million on the Borderlands movie directed by Eli Roth.
The film touted an all-star cast, including Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Jamie Lee Curtis, and up-and-coming Ariana Greenblatt, but received a poor reception from audiences. Blanchett played a notorious bounty hunter who forms an unlikely alliance with a ragtag team of outcasts on a quest to find the missing daughter of the most powerful man in the universe.
Borderlands earned a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 161 reviews, but global ticket sales stalled at just $32.9 million.
Also from Lionsgate’s “Borderlands.”
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“Argyle”
Estimated production budget: $200 million World box office receipts: $96.2 million Release date: February 2, 2024
Universal’s “Argyle” had a similarly star-studded cast, including Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Henry Cavill, John Cena, Dua Lipa, and Samuel L. It didn’t reach that point.
The film stars Howard as Ellie Conway, a reclusive writer whose best-selling spy novels begin to reflect the covert operations of real-life spy organizations.
After spending about $200 million on production and an estimated $100 million on marketing, the film grossed just $96.2 million worldwide.
Many of the film’s problems stem from its poor ratings, which some called a complex but predictable story, which earned it a 33% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
“The Fall Guy”
Estimated production budget: $125 million World box office receipts: $180.9 million Release date: May 3, 2024
In fact, Universal’s The Fall Guy was very well received by critics, with an 81% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But even the dynamic duo of Ryan Gosling, fresh from Barbie, and Emily Blunt, one of the stars of Oppenheimer, wasn’t enough to draw audiences to theaters.
The film is a love letter to stunt performers based on the 1980s TV show of the same name, and stars Colt Sievers, played by Gosling. Colt Sievers is a battle-scarred stuntman who is drawn back to the film industry after starring in a film directed by Gosling. Sievers’ former girlfriend, Jodi Moreno (Blunt), goes missing.
The Fall Guy grossed just $180.9 million worldwide. The production budget was $125 million, not including marketing or distribution costs. The focus on major franchises and lack of niche storylines seem to be narrowing the audience.
Ryan Gosling stars in Universal’s “The Fall Guy.”
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“Madame Web”
Estimated production budget: $80 million World box office revenue: $100 million Release date: February 14, 2024
Sony’s Spider-Man universe movies have been hit or miss at the box office over the years. Every successful Venom or Spider-Verse has a “Mobius” or “Madame Web.”
With an 11% score on Rotten Tomatoes, “Madame Web” generated the wrong kind of viral attention upon its release. Social media sites were flooded with memes poking fun at the actors’ lackluster performances, gaping plot holes, and poorly dubbed dialogue.
“Madame Web” follows Cassandra Webb, a New York City paramedic with clairvoyance. Webb’s vision warns him of a threat to the three young women, each of whom acquire spider powers in the future.
The film cost approximately $80 million to make and managed to collect approximately $100 million in ticket sales worldwide. However, due to marketing costs and revenue splitting with theaters, the film failed to recoup its budget.
“Furiosa: Mad Max Saga”
Estimated production budget: $168 million World box office receipts: $172.4 million Release date: May 24, 2024
Warner Bros.’ Furiosa: The Mad Max Saga was George Miller’s long-awaited prequel. But despite solid reviews, earning a 90% “Fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the film failed to explode at the box office.
The film, a prequel to 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road, depicts the childhood of Furiosa, who is kidnapped by a tyrannical warlord and spends several years trying to return to her hometown.
The film’s production benefited from extensive government subsidies for filming in Australia, which lessened the financial blow, but “Furiosa” only grossed $172.4 million during its worldwide release. I couldn’t get it. The production budget is estimated at approximately $168 million, excluding marketing costs.
For comparison, Mad Max: Fury Road grossed $368 million in worldwide release in 2015.
Chris Hemsworth stars as the villain Dementus in Warner Bros. “Furiosa: Mad Max Saga”
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“Megalopolis”
Estimated production budget: $120 million World box office receipts: $9.2 million Release date: September 27, 2024
“Megalopolis” was a passion project for writer/director Francis Ford Coppola, who had been developing the concept for the film since the late ’70s. He self-financed $120 million to make the film.
The film is set in an alternate version of 21st century New York City called New Rome. The film follows an architect named Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver) who attempts to revitalize a city by building a futuristic utopia called Megalopolis, but a corrupt leader tries to thwart his plans. It depicts the situation faced by the people.
In addition to Driver, the film, which a Rotten Tomatoes critic called “an overstuffed film,” also stars a big-name cast that includes Dustin Hoffman, Giancarlo Esposito, Laurence Fishburne, and Jon Voight. There were a lot of people in attendance, but it seemed that only Coppola’s biggest fans were attracted. “Megalopolis” grossed just $9.2 million worldwide.
The film was distributed by Lionsgate. It is unclear whether marketing and distribution costs were split 50-50 between Coppola and Lionsgate, or whether the studio shouldered the financial burden.
“Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1”
Estimated production budget: $100 million World box office receipts: $38.2 million Release date: June 28, 2024
Another passion project by director Kevin Costner, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, faced difficulties at the box office. The film only collected $38.2 million at the worldwide box office during its theatrical run. Due to poor box office results, Costner and Warner Bros. postponed the sequel, Chapter 2, which was scheduled to be released approximately six weeks after its initial theatrical release.
“Chapter 1” depicts various stories of people exploring the American West and pioneering new territory. This includes a scene in which Costner’s surly cowboy kills a fellow gunman and then goes on the run with a prostitute and a young boy.
Costner produced, wrote, directed, and starred in both films, spending an estimated $100 million on the two projects. Two more chapters of this story are still in development at an undisclosed budget.
Western movies have a hard time selling at the modern box office. While the classic genre is loved by movie buffs, it doesn’t have much appeal for movie buffs. According to ComScore, the highest-grossing western was Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 film “Django Unchained,” which grossed about $450 million worldwide. Costner’s 1990 Dances with Wolves had the second-highest worldwide ticket sales, not adjusted for inflation, at $424.2 million.
“The Lone Ranger” in 2013 grossed $260 million worldwide, but no other western has ever grossed more than $250 million worldwide.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal owns Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes.
