2019 Box Office Busts

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Here is what is weird. If you told people that Shazam may end up doing very well for what it is ($80-100 million is its budget) and advance tickets from Fandago has tracked a bit better than Aquaman. WB is expecting a $40-60 million opening for it. Shazam is quite a gamble for WB though. Its clearly playing up the action/comedy aspect and we will have to see what it does this opening weekend.

The weird factor is if you told folks last year that the big screen adaption of Dumbo could do worse than Shazam ...folks would have laughed. Its the same way that in 2018 people were told Bumblebee , Mary Poppins and more was gonna take on Aquaman at Christmas time. (With Aquaman winning that war)

Well, at least Shazam! will have three weeks to rake in the bucks before Avengers: Endgame drops like a nuke and blows everything else away.

[TriggerWarning]

According to Box Office Mojo, Dumbo won the weekend box office with $45 million. Considering the film cost $170 million to make, and will have a short stay at the number #1 spot with Shazam! on the way this weekend, it looks like the latest Disney live action offering might well be a flop.

It wouldn't surprise me if Pet Semetary blows Shazam out of the water. Early reviews are very high for the film and after the success of It people are going to be hyped for this. Right now predictions only have it in the 25-30 million range but I think it will exceed them while Shazam will underwhelm because really outside of die hard comic fans does anyone really give a crap about Shazam?

[Killerbee911]

It wouldn't surprise me if Pet Semetary blows Shazam out of the water. Early reviews are very high for the film and after the success of It people are going to be hyped for this. Right now predictions only have it in the 25-30 million range but I think it will exceed them while Shazam will underwhelm because really outside of die hard comic fans does anyone really give a crap about Shazam?

Pet sematary is R ,Shazam is PG both have good reviews,Shazam will easily make more money than it. That is pretty easy to see.

What I will say I don't think Shazam might have the legs to do crazy numbers , I haven't seen it yet but strikes me as good flick you see once but if something with reasonable quality is around you might watch instead of second viewing of Shazam. With Dumbo being a bust that kills only thing that was direct competition for the audience so I think Shazam does better now. I don't think Pet Sematary and Hellboy(maybe comic fans) have to much of overlapping audience,If you are going to see those movies I don't think family friendly movie was your thing.

[useridgoeshere]

Here is what is weird. If you told people that Shazam may end up doing very well for what it is ($80-100 million is its budget) and advance tickets from Fandago has tracked a bit better than Aquaman. WB is expecting a $40-60 million opening for it. Shazam is quite a gamble for WB though. Its clearly playing up the action/comedy aspect and we will have to see what it does this opening weekend.

The weird factor is if you told folks last year that the big screen adaption of Dumbo could do worse than Shazam ...folks would have laughed. Its the same way that in 2018 people were told Bumblebee , Mary Poppins and more was gonna take on Aquaman at Christmas time. (With Aquaman winning that war)

I disagree with Shazam being a gamble. It’s the safest path. The gambles were the Zach Snyder adaptations. Action-comedy and superheroes are exactly what people want. Only question is whether they could pull it off well.

I also disagree with anyone thinking Shazam beating Dumbo was laughable. Dumbo entered with a ton of negatives and I don’t think most people would’ve thought it was impossible. Lion King head-to-head, maybe. Dumbo? No. It’s had low expectations for a while.

[Killerbee911]

I also disagree with anyone thinking Shazam beating Dumbo was laughable. Dumbo entered with a ton of negatives and I don’t think most people would’ve thought it was impossible. Lion King head-to-head, maybe. Dumbo? No. It’s had low expectations for a while.

I agree there is a weird cycle of overhyping Disney stuff then bashing Disney movies for not reaching hype. Like content doesn't matter I can point the questionable movies from the upcoming live action slate for example

Questionable Hunchback of Notre Dame, Pinocchio ,Lady and Trump, Cruella

Boom or Bust: Maleficent 2,Aladdin,Mulan, Lilo & Stitch

Printing Money: Lion King, Little Mermaid.

I don't get why people were predicting extreme success for Mary Poppins or Dumbo. We know what the classic are and the movies nobody really asked for. I mean we get why Disney put them they have park built on selling these things it makes sense to keep pushing them out for new gen but they are things that aren't a sure shots. Disney put a lot mediocre movies that did well because kids eat up certain things but you can't hide these stuff in live action.

[Username taken]

Well, at least Shazam! will have three weeks to rake in the bucks before Avengers: Endgame drops like a nuke and blows everything else away.

Agreed.

Shazam will make good money. It's getting very good reviews and all DCEU movies (except Justice League) have been quite successful.

I've only seen two movies (and both were Star Wars movies) come with the buzz that Avengers Endgame is coming with.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

I disagree with Shazam being a gamble. It’s the safest path. The gambles were the Zach Snyder adaptations. Action-comedy and superheroes are exactly what people want. Only question is whether they could pull it off well.

I also disagree with anyone thinking Shazam beating Dumbo was laughable. Dumbo entered with a ton of negatives and I don’t think most people would’ve thought it was impossible. Lion King head-to-head, maybe. Dumbo? No. It’s had low expectations for a while.

I will disagree here with several reasons.


- One this is Superman and Batman. 2 of WB's biggest iconic characters who have appeared in huge hit films the last 4 plus decades. The last Batman film did over $1 billion box office. The characters have been a constant presence in marketing to kids for decades from cartoons , comics , games etc.

- Wonder Woman and the Justice League was considered easy bets to add onto those films by Snyder. Justice League and WW has been in cartoons , comics , etc for years as has Justice League.


- Captain Marvel aka Shazam hasn't been a major character at WB in the 40 years since they acquired the character. Its been in one 1970's TV series and has had attempts at cartoons and toys etc. But nothing to what Superman and Batman have been.


- WB is putting $80-100 million dollars into a Shazam film. They would be safer putting $150-200 into a Batman film being honest since the character has a bigger track record as we know.


- The film is a comedy/action film as were seeing in clips and WB is playing up the comedy moments were seeing in trailers. Its a big gamble to play that up more than the action super hero/villain fights unlike prior WB DC films.

[SebastianS]

I disagree

I will disagree here with several reasons.


- One this is Superman and Batman. 2 of WB's biggest iconic characters who have appeared in huge hit films the last 4 plus decades. The last Batman film did over $1 billion box office. The characters have been a constant presence in marketing to kids for decades from cartoons , comics , games etc.

Except, the Batman movies that worked where all self-contained and left no room for superheroe movies in the traditional sense. It is next to impossible to build a shared universe out of the Nolan films. And the Superman movies/appearances have been from bad to terrible.

Making any new Batman or Superman movies that can kickstart/impulse the DC Cinematic Universe IS the big gamble.

- Wonder Woman and the Justice League was considered easy bets to add onto those films by Snyder. Justice League and WW has been in cartoons , comics , etc for years as has Justice League.

I think you are overestimating the power of cartoons and comics for the casual audience. Certain degree of recognition? Maybe.

- Captain Marvel aka Shazam hasn't been a major character at WB in the 40 years since they acquired the character. Its been in one 1970's TV series and has had attempts at cartoons and toys etc. But nothing to what Superman and Batman have been.

Except that based on the previews, he is like Superman, but funny, doesn't take himself too serious and gives this "Marvel"-like movie vibe, which is what audiences around the world seem to prefer. See, for example, Aquaman.

- WB is putting $80-100 million dollars into a Shazam film. They would be safer putting $150-200 into a Batman film being honest since the character has a bigger track record as we know.

No, they wouldn't. Or rather, in the long term, they wouldn't. The reason we are not seeing a 150-200 million Batman/Superman movie is because, right now, WB has no idea what to do with those characters, how to move forward, and how to use them to impulse their DCshared universe. The next 150 million Batman movie will star an entirely new cast, with a new take on the character, and with a new story arc. Those are a lot of questions marks.

Shazam? It looks like a fun superhero movie.

- The film is a comedy/action film as were seeing in clips and WB is playing up the comedy moments were seeing in trailers. Its a big gamble to play that up more than the action super hero/villain fights unlike prior WB DC films.

Except, that's exactly what most of the people want. Aquaman completely destroyed other DC Universe movies record because it is a Marvel movie. You can see elements of Thor and GoTG all over it. Audiences like that.

[Scott Taylor]

The thing about Shazam is that it has cross-cultural appeal. Complete non-comic fans I know, who wouldn't know Thor from a hole in the ground, saw one trailer for Shazam and are interested. Thats either super-incredible marketing or the movie just plays to a larger audience than just the comic crowd. I think the latter. Its got the same sort of quirky humor that people remember from GotG, another huge cross-cultural hit.

[titanfan]

Shazam! is the counter programming movie--not the superhero movie. The budget is what you would expect for kid movie. It will do fine. The rave reviews it's getting are a bonus.

I would say--is there any buzz for a Pet Cemetary movie so soon? I'll probably see it, but geez, the story is the same retelling of a story we've seen a lot of times.

[Cyke]

I dont know if I would have laughed but i woulda thought Dumbo would do better then it did. I never liked the cartoon and I dont know anyone who loves that movies but clearly they are out there if it's considered a classic. The movie wasnt bad at all either just wasnt great either. Dumbo was cute and the characters were fine. Keaton chewing up scenery is less entertaining then you would think though. Colin Farells southern twang was a bit tiresome at times aswell. But he was solid same as Devito, Eva green and the kids. But yea nothing about the movie was spectacular. Even dumbo who was cute turned into horrible cartoon CGI when it was time for someone to ride on his back

I was rooting for Dumbo to succeed, but I can't say that I'm surprised that it's going to tank. Nostalgia has its limits, it seems.

The thing about Shazam is that it has cross-cultural appeal. Complete non-comic fans I know, who wouldn't know Thor from a hole in the ground, saw one trailer for Shazam and are interested. Thats either super-incredible marketing or the movie just plays to a larger audience than just the comic crowd. I think the latter. Its got the same sort of quirky humor that people remember from GotG, another huge cross-cultural hit.

Fun fact about Cyke: that 1980s Superman arcade had a 2-player option, and the 2nd player would have a palette-swap Red Superman with bits of yellow added here and there, along with a gray cape that's closer to white.

As a little kid, I really thought that was Captain Marvel as the 2nd player. Since I always loved 2nd bananas like Luigi and Tails, I would volunteer to play who I thought was Captain Marvel. I was really disappointed to find out much later on that it was just Superman in another suit.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Shazam! is the counter programming movie--not the superhero movie. The budget is what you would expect for kid movie. It will do fine. The rave reviews it's getting are a bonus.

For whatever it's worth, I think it's already been declared "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. For whatever it's worth.

[Bruce Wayne]

According to Box Office Mojo, Dumbo won the weekend box office with $45 million. Considering the film cost $170 million to make, and will have a short stay at the number #1 spot with Shazam! on the way this weekend, it looks like the latest Disney live action offering might well be a flop.

Flying CGI elephants are not cheap. But seriously who thought it was a good idea to spend so much money on a Dumbo movie. They should have held down on the budgets.

[Comic-Reader Lad]

For whatever it's worth, I think it's already been declared "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. For whatever it's worth.

Yes, it has. I posted that on Saturday in the Shazam movie thread. It's been holding at 93% on RT for days.

The thing about Shazam is that it has cross-cultural appeal.

I think that the first movie will do well with all races and a sequel where the other foster kids get bigger roles can do even better.

I really predict that the general audience will take to Shazam in a big way and seek out his comics and merchandise. Unfortunately, DC doesn't really have a ton of trades or toys to fill what I think will be a big demand. That's too bad because Shazam stories have been traditionally easy to get into. DC is reprinting the 1970s Shazam series #1-18 in hardcover, but in a dumb move, it doesn't come out until June. There's really not a ton of Shazam reading material ready day-and-date with the movie, so DC really dropped the ball there.

I'm thinking Shazam will really hit home with today's kids and be "their" hero in a way not seen since Spider-Man. Shazam really is a kids' wish fulfillment come to life.

[Scott Taylor]

DC has always been weird with Shazam marketing. I don't recall there ever being a big presence by those characters for action figures, lunchboxes, underwear, you name it.