Usually, the box-office battle revolves around which studio will earn the most from a film. However, this year, all the studios seem to be competing to bring the biggest flop to cinemas. We have already witnessed several spectacular financial failures this year. Now we can add two more to this list: the Disney and Lucasfilm show “Indiana Jones and the Artifact of Destiny” and the Universal and DreamWorks animation “Miss Kraken: Ruby Gillman”.
The fate of the new “Indiana Jones” was sealed at Cannes. The lack of enthusiastic reviews meant that no one expected the film to have a high opening. But now the show is struggling to meet even its worst projections of $60 million. Current estimates also stand at 60 million. Will this result be confirmed by the latest data? We’ll find out on Monday.
For Disney, this marks another disastrous start to their productions this year. However, “The Little Mermaid” and “The Elements Between Us” managed to rely on viewers’ recommendations and were saved from being spectacular failures. “Artifact of Destiny” will face a challenge in that regard. It received a B+ rating in CinemaScore, which doesn’t seem like a bad result. The problem lies in the fact that the over-50 audience, a small fraction of the Indiana Jones viewers, overestimates the rating. Younger viewers, who make up the majority of the audience, liked the film much less and gave it a B- rating.
“Indiana Jones and the Artifact of Destiny” desperately needs a boost in the coming weeks. The show was incredibly expensive, with a reported budget of $329 million according to Deadline.
“Miss Kraken: Ruby Gillman” is also a disaster. This $70 million animation only managed to earn $5.2 million, marking a new low in DreamWorks Animation’s production history. Previously, the studio’s animation from two years ago, “Wild Valley Mustang: Road to Freedom,” had the worst start with $6.1 million.
As a consolation for the creators, those few who watched “Miss Kraken: Ruby Gillman” left the theaters delighted. In CinemaScore, the film received an A- rating. However, that doesn’t seem to be helping the film much. With fierce competition from Sony and Pixar, even positive reviews will not significantly impact the attendance for this animation.
And let’s continue discussing this year’s flops. Once again, “Flash” has rapidly declined. Cinemas are swiftly removing the film from their schedules, with one and a half thousand cinemas already discontinuing its screening. As a result, the DC show finished its third weekend without reaching the $100 million milestone, which will likely happen on Monday or Tuesday. Everything points to it being a bigger failure than “Green Lantern.” After 17 days in theaters, “Flash” has earned $99.3 million, while “Green Lantern” had $102.2 million.
Two major cinema premieres are planned for this Friday. Sony will present the horror film “Insidious: Red Door,” while Lionsgate will introduce the comedy “Joy Ride.”
