Disney Strange world

Disney Strange World lost $ 100 million

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Disney Strange World lost $ 100 million at the box office on Thanksgiving, leaving the studio scrambling to clean up oceans, mountains, and terrain of red ink. The animated feature opened dramatically behind expectations with $11.9 million from 4,174 North American theaters over the weekend and $18.6 million from the five-day holiday frame.

Before estimates were revised downward, the film was expected to gross $30 million to $40 million between Wednesday and Sunday – and even those figures would have been unflattering, to begin with.

Opening ticket sales for Strange World have now been recorded as one of Disney’s worst opening weekends in modern times, slightly ahead of pandemic-era releases “West Side Story” ($10.5 million) and Fellow family films like it lag far behind. “Encanto” ($27.2 million over the traditional weekend and $40 million during the extended Thanksgiving holiday) and “Lightyear” ($51 million).

Usually this time of year, a Disney family movie is the big draw, says Paul Dergarabedian, a senior analyst at ComScore. It shows that we are still recovering and adapting to the constraints of the pandemic.

Disney Strange World lost $ 100 million
IMAGE SOURCE BY FOXBUISNESS

Disney Strange World lost $ 100 million

Unless its business picks up dramatically over the next few weeks (and that seems unlikely considering the film’s moderate reviews, lackluster audience, and minimal buzz), sources predict that “Strange Worlds” will see more than its theatrical run. The run would result in losses of at least $100 million.

Even with a fair amount of focus on Disney+ and home entertainment platforms, box office experts suggest that it will be difficult to get a big-budget film in black. Since “Strange World” cost $180 million to produce and tens of millions more in global marketing and distribution fees, sources say the film needs to gross around $360 million.

And keep in mind: Those levels were unattainable for “Lightyear” (which ended its theatrical run with $226 million worldwide) and “Encanto” (which ended its theatrical run with $256 million worldwide). done),

Despite those films having big opening weekends. Rival studios believe “Strange Worlds” will be lucky to reach $45 million by the end of its domestic run. By comparison, “Encanto” earned $96 million in North America, while “Lightyear” earned $118 million in the States.

David A. runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. It’s a weak debut by Disney animation standards, says Gross. “At a cost of $180 million, combined with marketing expenditures, the film would end up in the red even with decent supporting earnings.”

Foreign earnings may not provide many lifelines. “Strange World” similarly tanked at the international box office with $9.2 million from 43 markets. Like most Hollywood films, it will not play in two major international markets, China or Russia, due to geopolitical tensions.

In addition, Disney chose not to present “Strange Worlds” in several smaller markets throughout the Middle East, including Malaysia and Indonesia, because the film features a gay character. Films containing LGBTQ references have been routinely targeted by censors in those regions and Disney was unwilling to cut parts of the film to comply with their guidelines.

It was a weak Thanksgiving holiday for Hollywood, as every film that opened (including “Devotion”) or expanded nationwide (in the case of “The Fablemans” and “Bones and All”) broke at the box office. Yet it wasn’t entirely terrible for Disney. Studio’s Marvel adventure “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” climbed the box office charts for the third weekend in a row, adding $64 million over the five-day stretch. So far, the superhero sequel has earned an impressive $367 million in North America and $675 million globally.

Strange World continues a bleak streak for Disney’s animated offerings, which have long been considered the gold standard. Yet the studio, which carried on the tradition by putting Pixar movies like “Soul” and “Luca” directly on Disney+ during the pandemic, hasn’t been able to quite recapture those audiences with theatrical releases. Some analysts believe the studio may have inadvertently conditioned families to watch new movies on its popular streaming service.

In any case, Disney has flopped with pandemic-era offerings like “Lightyear,” one of the few Pixar films to lose money in its theatrical run, as well as “Encanto,” which didn’t take until the musical legend to become a viral TikTok sensation. Landed on Disney+. This is an especially important business for Disney as it boosts the company’s consumer products business in addition to streaming and theme parks.

Disney Strange World lost $ 100 million
IMAGE SOURCE BY TMZ

It is not only Disney that has struggled to succeed in the animation space during the time of the pandemic. Even as COVID cases dwindle and normal life returns, families remain frustratingly selective about what they are willing to leave home to watch.

As a result, “Minions: The Rise of Gru” and “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” — both hail from established franchises — has been about the only kid-friendly movies to resonate with audiences this past year. This is a problem because films targeted at youth, especially of the animated variety, used to be a significant portion of the year’s total box office returns. A sequel in the “Shrek” universe, “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” will be the medium’s next big test. Universal and DreamWorks will debut the film on December 21.

Don Hall directed “Strange Worlds,” which stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Dennis Quaid, Jabuki Young-White, and Gabrielle Union as a family of legendary explorers who discover a mysterious land in search of its vital energy. embark on a treacherous journey to save the Source from being lost.

Audiences were, perhaps surprisingly, harsher on the film than critics. ‘Strange World’ landed a bleak “B” CinemaScore from exit polls, as well as a 73% average from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Peter Debruge, Variety’s chief critic, praised the film’s visuals, writing that “it’s the character as much as the environment that brings it to life,

The ‘Journey to the Center of the Earth’-style adventure movie is colorful and varied in all the best ways.” But he wasn’t sold on the adventure in question, saying that “as great as the people and places they discover can be… However, the relatively unimaginative story sends this grand toon into another level of status.”

HOLLYWOOD

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