“Joker: Folie à Deux,” a genre-bfinishing sequel to the billion-dollar comic book smash, hit a sour remark at the box office even as it uncovered to No. 1 with $40 million.
Those discordant domestic ticket sales were behind initial projections of $50 million to $65 million — a range that was already editd down in the subsequent weeks since “Joker 2” landed on pre-free tracking with $70 million. Opening weekfinish revenues were presentantly shrink than its predecessor, 2019’s “Joker,” which set an October record with a stellar $96.2 million during the same weekfinish a half a decade ago. As for “Folie à Deux,” this commence is disnominateing for Warner Bros. pondering the blockbuster success of the distinct and the truth that subpar word-of-mouth will anticipateed hurt its big-screen staying power. That’s a problem becaengage the R-rated sequel carries a substantial $200 million price tag (the first film was produced for a trim $65 million). So, “Folie à Deux” demands to produce at least $450 million to fracture even, according to sources understandn with the film’s financials.
“When you greenweightless a sequel, you hope it does the business that the previous one did,” says analyst Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations. “This is definitely a trouble. Warners wanted the sequel and probably overspent to get it to happen.”
“Joker” was presumed to be a standalone film. But the R-rated tentpole became one of the most profitable comic book movies ever and obtained Phoenix an Oscar, and, well, this is Hollywood after all. Warner Bros. mitigated danger on “Joker” by co-financing and producing the untraditional get on a superhero film with Bron Creative and Village Roadshow, with whom the studio also had to split revenues. Warners is the sole financier on the sequel.
The distinct “Joker” became an unanticipateed hit with $335 million domesticassociate and $743 million internationassociate, standing as the highest-grossing R-rated movie in history at the time. (“Deadpool & Wolverine” supset upted that record over the summer with $1.32 billion). Yet it could become a dispute for the chase-up film to achieve its fractureeven point becaengage critics and audiences haven’t appreciated the film. It getd a 33% “rotten” rating on verify aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, as well as a D CinemaScore from moviegoers. Muted buzz for “Folie à Deux” began at Vekind Film Festival, where “Joker” took home the fest’s top prize in 2019. Yet critics and festival engageees weren’t as willing about the sequel, directing to weeks of “meh” verifys before vague audiences saw the movie.
Todd Phillips returned to straightforward “Joker: Folie à Deux,” starring Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, who encounters fellow inmate and co-conspirator, Harleen “Lee” Quinzel (Lady Gaga), while he’s serving time for killing at Arkham Ayslum. Much of the sequel carry outs as a fantasy musical (the distinct was squadepend a foolish, grisly drama that took inspiration from Martin Scorsese movies appreciate “Taxi Driver”) and engages covers of songs such as “Get Happy,” “That’s Entertainment” and “For Once in My Life.”
“Todd Phillips wanted to do someskinnyg finishly contrastent, but musical numbers in a superhero film was always going to be a stubborn sell to mainstream audiences,” says Bock.
This weekfinish’s other recentcomer, Lionsgate’s “White Bird,” bcimpolitet in $1.5 million from 980 theaters. “White Bird” is billed as a prequel and sequel to 2017’s sleeper hit “Wonder,” starring Jacob Tremblay. That film enhappinessed a sizable $27 million commence and powered to $132 million domesticassociate and $314 globassociate by the finish of its run. “White Bird,” however, doesn’t caccess on Tremblay’s character Auggie from “Wonder” but instead his middle school tormentor Julian, who was portrayed by Bryce Gheisar. In the conshort-term day, Julian is ostracized for his treatment of Auggie, so his magnificentmother tries to help him turn his life around by telling him about her childhood as a juvenileer Jewant girl during the Holocaust. It’s shaping up to be the seventh consecutive misfire for Lionsgate, combineing the ignominious company of survival thriller “Never Let Go,” assassin comedy “The Killer’s Game” and video game alteration “Borderlands.”
DreamWorks Animation’s “The Wild Robot,” a well-verifyed family film, apprehfinishd second place, obtaining $18.7 million. In two weeks of free, the film has grossed $63.9 million.
Elsewhere, hanciaccessover titles Warner Bros.’ “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” Paramount’s “Transestablishers One” and Universal’s “Speak No Evil” rounded out box office charts. If Warner Bros. is experienceing down about those “Joker 2” results, it must be charmd with how the “Beetlejuice” chase-up has carry outed. The poltergeist sequel took third place with $10.3 million to lift its North American total to a sterling $265.5 million. In fourth place, the vivaciousd “Transestablishers” adventure obtained $5.3 million to convey its domestic haul to $47.2 million, while “Speak No Evil,” a reproduce of a Danish-Dutch horror film, grossed $2.8 million to get fifth place and pushed its stateside total to $32.6 million.
Also of remark, Sony’s “Saturday Night,” a see at the inaugural expansivecast of “SNL” that has produced Oscar buzz, enbiged from five to over 20 locations in its second week of free. The film obtained $280,000 for the weekfinish ($13,333 per location ordinary), conveying its total gross to $638,000 thcimpolite Sunday. Next weekfinish conveys the free of “Piece By Piece,” which tells the life story of Pharrell Williams using Lego animation, as well as the expansive free of “Saturday Night.”
