A last-minute post-strike talk show appearance by Brie Larson was not enough to stop The Marvels deliver the lowest opening weekend by any Marvel Studios release as it mustered an estimated $47m over three days.
The word in distribution circles is the recent SAG-AFTRA work stoppage has impacted films’ box office by 10-20%, however there seemed little the star could do to alter the grim three-day trajectory of this latest superhero outing.
Much has been written and spoken about superhero fatigue and while there was another lacklustre performance this year, by Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania, that film was sandwiched by two successes – November 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and May’s Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3.
Yet The Marvels brings a new low to Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige and his colleagues at the hit factory and parent company Disney, especially in light of the $1.1bn final global tally of 2019 predecessor Captain Marvel $1bn, which launched on $153.4m and finished on $426.8m in North America. The previous low was held The Incredible Hulk on an unadjusted $55.4m following its 2008 release via Universal.
Captain Marvel came at a time when Marvel Studios could do no wrong. Pre-pandemic crowds had lapped up Avengers: Infinity War in 2018 and would do the same with Avengers: Endgame in 2019, turning both into two of the highest grossing films in history.
Plus there was no “plus” at the time – streaming service Disney+ would not launch in the US until November 2022 and Marvel films were a treat to be savoured. Today, the Marvel Studios canon and a seemingly endless supply of series are readily available on the platform.
After last week’s release calendar shuffle by Disney, Deadpool 3 is the only Marvel film scheduled to open in 2024. That could work in the film’s favour. Where Captain Marvel goes from here remains to be seen.
Nia DaCosta (Candyman) directed The Marvels, which drew a 61% male crowd, with the 25-34 bracket the most engaged age demographic on 30% audience share.
Elsewhere, Universal’s horror hit Five Nights At Freddy’s in second place added $9m for an excellent $127m after a 52% drop in the third weekend, and Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour at number three used a $5.9m weekend haul to raise the tally to $172.5m through AMC Distribution.
Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla held well in fourth place on $4.8m through A24 for a $12.7m running total after expanding from 1,359 theatres to 2,361 in its third sessions. The awards contender stars Venice Volpi Cup winner Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi.
Turning to other Oscar hopefuls, Martin Scorsese’s Killers Of The Flower Moon added $4.7m through Apple’s theatrical distribution partner Paramount Pictures to reach $59.9m in its fourth weekend and rounded out the top five. The film fell 32% and dropped two places.
And Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers at Focus Features starring Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Dominic Sessa cimbed 10 slots to number six after the 1970s-set comedy drama expanded from 64 to 778 and grossed $3.2m for a $4.3m tally after three sessions.
Sony’s faith-based live-action Christmas drama Journey To Bethlehem opened at number seven on $2.4m from 2,002 sites.
A24 released Nicolas Cage in Kristoffer Borgli’s absurdist comedy horror Dream Scenario, one of the company’s awards season contenders about a man who begins to appear in everyone’s dreams. It earned $215,552 from six theatres for a solid $35,925 average.
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