- The Little Mermaid – £5,012,929 – NE
Took £1.57m Friday (31.3%); £1.75m Saturday (34.9%); £1.64m Sunday (32.7%); (took £1.91m Bank Holiday Monday)
286th biggest opening between The Grinch and Pitch Perfect 2 (close to Scooby-Doo, Paddington, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and Batman and Robin) and 450th inflated opening between The Smurfs and Creed III (close to 101 Dalmatians (1996), The Mask, The Nutty Professor and Superman III).
Interestingly opening was close to several long-gap sequels and reimaginations from other studios including Planet of the Apes, Trainspotting 2, Dolittle, Die Hard 4.0, Independence Day: Resurgence, Pokemon Detective Pikachu, Karate Kid, Mad Max: Fury Road, Ghostbusters and Batman Begins.
8th biggest Disney reimagination opening between Dumbo and Cinderella; 60th biggest Disney opening between Tangled and Ant-Man and The Wasp (close to Bolt, Zootropolis, Frozen and Wreck-It Ralph) and 84th biggest inflated between 101 Dalmatians (1996) and Scream 2 (close to The Lion King (1994), Armageddon, Monsters University and Aladdin (1993).
Disney’s 20th reimagination of their classic animations, the first was 1996’s 101 Dalmatians, apart from Mulan, Lady and the Tramp and Pinocchio had theatrical releases. These reimaginations are almost shot-by-shot remakes of their classic animated films.
Took 31.3% (£1.57m) of its opening from Friday similar to 31.2% (£5.2m) of 2019’s The Lion King, both Fridays were during school term and the weather was similar, so it’s just an excuse to blame the weather for the lower-than-expected opening for The Little Mermaid as if it’s a film audiences want to see they will see it no matter the weather.
7th widest opening (widest 2023 opening) between Downton Abbey and Star Wars The Last Jedi (20th 700+ cinema opening since Star Wars The Last Jedi.
The opening was only 5.24% of the US showing how poorly the film opened in the UK as the industry often uses 10% of the US as a guide to its UK opening; Incredibles 2, Cinderella, Finding Dory, Oz: The Great and Powerful, Monsters University had similar low percentage openings 5.3%, 5.6%, 6%, 4.7% and 4.2%. So will be interesting to see how it holds beyond this weekend.
Last weekend was Memorial Day in the US and similar to Thanksgiving both see boosts in cinemagoing which is not often the case in the UK over Whitsun, which is the problem when films open day and date. The Whitsun weekend has had mixed success over the years for cinemagoing, and this weekend was very similar to 2017 when Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge opened with £5,238,049.
Excuses were made that the film was review bombed on sites like IMDB but reviews have little impact on opening weekend audiences for films like The Little Mermaid as the demographic they are aimed at don’t read reviews.
For decades Disney would re-release their classic animation films to new generations (The Little Mermaid was re-released in the summer of 1998 opening £234,783 (£470,731 inflated) taking £1,768,481 (£3,545,739 inflated) always successful in cinemas and the 80s and 90s, (in the early 80s re-releases of animated classics including The Jungle Book and Snow White were the top 3 biggest films of the year). The cinema re-release would be followed by a home video release available for a limited time. In the 90s and 00s, Disney made direct-to-video sequels to their classic animated films.
These films are called live-action but they are photo-realistic animation, while looking stunning feels emotionless unlike 2D animation which is a far more emotional experience; The Lion King when Mufasa dies, or when The Iron Giant sacrifices himself to protect everyone on Earth as his hero Superman would do. These moments bring tears to the audience young and old as seen in a recent Ted Lasso episode.
The Little Mermaid was first released in cinemas in October 1990 almost a year after its US opening in November 1989; was the 9th biggest film of 1990 between Gremlins 2: The New Batch and Parenthood taking (15.46x opening) £6,266,749 (£21,731,902 inflated) after opening with £405,473 from 258 screens (£1,406,104 inflated) had 29th biggest opening of 1990 between Internal Affairs and Family Business (biggest 1990 openings were Ghost £1,504,893; Back To The Future Part III £1,361,879; Gremlins 2: The New Batch £1,358,347; Total Recall £1,211,167; Honey, I Shrunk the Kids £1,196,710.
While it makes these animated films very rewatchable, have seen these animated films countless times reimaginations aren’t rewatchable, but they have done their job as hype brings in the audience and they take a predictable £40m+ in the UK and $1bn worldwide before the pixie dust fades away.
The trailer released in March was one of the most watched of the Disney reimaginations with over 108 million views in the first 24 hours, the most viewed since 2019’s The Lion King. The Lion King‘s trailer received 130 million and Aladdin 106.5 million times. It’s no surprise that these films get the views they get as the original animated films have been beloved by audiences for more than 25 years and they were huge successes when they were originally released. As with Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Marvel, it’s far easier for Disney to remake a classic than try to create a new classic which they have struggled to create over the last 20 years.
These reimaginations are nostalgia-led due to the love of the original and attract audiences of all ages, but as with Disney’s Star Wars films they are all hype and no sustenance once the pixel dust fades away, but that often happens after they have taken $1bn+ worldwide. Critics have given The Little Mermaid mixed reviews with Halle Bailey being the best thing about it, but as with Rachel Zegler cast in the Snow White reimagination (opening next year) surely their talents are being wasted remaking a classic animated film rather than starring in a remake.
This is also my issue with Disney over the last 15 years always taking the easy option of remaking, rebooting and building on the success of other studios with Marvel, Star Wars and Indiana Jones rather than making something original as Disney used to be the most creative film studio in the world.
The biggest Disney re-imaginations openings:
2017’s Beauty and the Beast opened £19.7m (took £4.9m Friday) taking £72,430,579
2019’s The Lion King opened £16,671,764 (£5.2m Friday) taking £75,938,299
2010’s Alice in Wonderland opened £10,555,220 (£2.56m Friday) taking £42,169,542
2016’s The Jungle Book opened £9,901,921 (£2.2m Friday) taking £46,235,032
2019’s Aladdin opened £7,066,773 (took £1.2m Friday and Weds £725k, Thurs 608k) taking £36,710,978
While the original animated film is as beloved as Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King the film is unlikely to get anywhere near their BO, instead will be more likely similar to Aladdin. The excuse will be the hot sunny weather with the highest temperatures of the year from Thursday to Bank Holiday Monday, but if it is a film people want to see they will see it no matter the weather.
- 2. Fast X – £2,257,834– £10,203,511
Dropped 61.7% in the second weekend
Took £643k Friday (28.5%) 71.1% drop (£2.225m); £853k Saturday (37.8%) 60.4% drop (£2.156m); £762k Sunday (33.7%) £1.515m (49.7% drop)
372nd biggest second weekend between Armageddon and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (close to The Matrix, Free Guy, The Hangover and Mission: Impossible) and 676th biggest inflated between Rio and Arachnophobia (close to Dead Poets Society, Crimson Tide, A Few Good Men and Under Siege).
7th biggest Fast & Furious second weekend between Fast Five (£2,609,244) and Fast & Furious (£1,929,159); had the 2nd biggest second-weekend drop of 61.7% between The Fate of the Furious and Fast & Furious; 8th biggest Fast & Furious film after 10 days between Fast & Furious (£10,244,568) and 2 Fast 2 Furious (£4,958,135).
Fast X was to be the penultimate part of the Fast & Furious series and the eleventh film of the franchise, but Vin Diesel has recently said it would be a three-part finale not two.
Originally Fast X was meant to be the first part of a two-part finale. Vin Diesel recently said he plans to make it into a trilogy of films and also spoke of spinoffs including an all-female spinoff and then probably a reboot as it’s now 22 years ago since the first film was released and film series never end.
The 10 Fast & Furious films have taken £192m and £235m inflation inflated.
665th biggest film between Final Destination and Deep Impact (close to Cape Fear, The Spy Who Loved Me, Sleepers and Tron Legacy) and 1,144th biggest inflated between Bride Wars and The Parent Trap (close to The Pelican Brief, Natural Born Killers, The Untouchables and Robocop (1988).
- 3. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 – £1,594,929 – £31,658,650
Down 43.3% in the fourth weekend
Took £415k Friday (26%) 43.3% drop (£732k); £613k Saturday (38.4%) 45.2% drop (£1.19m); £567k Sunday (35.5%) 40.1% drop (£947k).
Fourth Weekends
Thor: Love and Thunder dropped 37% taking £1,908,179 #3 from 690 screens and £30,832,102 82.5% of £37,369,361; #1 Dc League of Super-pets £2,694,626 1st week.
Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness dropped 53% £1,371,319 #2 from 661 screens and £37,764,834 89.7% of £42,082,100; #1 Top Gun: Maverick £15,931,497 1st week
Black Panther Wakanda Forever dropped 44% £1,505,886 #2 from 637 screens and £29,473,743 85.8% of £34,345,903: #1 Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical £2,531,782 (2nd week)
2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 dropped 40% £1,259,998 #3 from 497 screens and £21,895,128 78.5% of £28,599,216; #1 The Inbetweeners 2 £2,366,161.
2017’s Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 dropped 40% £1,942,687 #3 from 599 screens and £36,309,702 88.9% of £40,839,462; #1 Alien: Covenant £2,127,347 2nd week.
150th biggest fourth weekend between Gone Girl and The Theory Of Everything (close to Incredibles, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and Wonder Woman) and the 300th biggest inflated between Cars and There’s Something About Mary (close to Look Who’s Talking, A Few Good Men, The Mummy (1999) and Interview with the Vampire).
18th biggest comic-book fourth weekend between Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Wonder Woman (close to Aquaman, The Batman, Men in Black 3 and Deadpool) and the 31st biggest inflated between Deadpool and Black Panther Wakanda Forever (close to Iron Man 3, X-Men 2, Captain America: Civil War and Spider-Man 2).
11th biggest MCU fourth weekend between Avengers: Age of Ultron (£1,661,968) and Spider-Man Homecoming (£1,560,458) (close to Thor: Love and Thunder, Captain Marvel, Shang-Chi and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever).
The 32 MCU films have made £1.1bn since 2008 and almost £1.3bn inflation inflated.
12th biggest MCU film after 26 days between Captain Marvel (£32,490,765) and Thor: Love and Thunder (£30,832,102) close to Captain America: Civil War, Iron Man 3, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Thor: Ragnarok).
25th biggest comic-book film between Deadpool 2 and Thor: Ragnarok (close to Men In Black, Spider-Man 3, Man of Steel and Guardians of the Galaxy) and 40th biggest inflated between X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: The Last Stand (close to Suicide Squad, The Amazing Spider-Man, Superman III and Batman and Robin).
132nd biggest film between Slumdog Millionaire and Gladiator (close to Gravity, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 and Notting Hill) and 296th biggest inflated between A Fish Called Wanda and me, Robot (close to Star Wars Special Edition, Mission: Impossible II, The Living Daylights and Pulp Fiction).
- 4. The Super Mario Bros – £292,155 – £52,260,294
Down 46.3% in the eighth weekend
Took £46k Friday (15.7%) 37.8% drop (£74k); £126k Saturday (43.1%) 4.5% drop 51.5% (£260k); £120.15k Sunday (41.1%) 42.1% drop (£207.4k).
177th biggest eighth weekend between Harry Potter & Prisoner Of Azkaban and La La Land (close to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Monsters, Inc. and Mission Impossible) and 274th biggest inflated between Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked and Free Guy (close to Jumanji, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, The Lego Movie and The Simpsons).
39th biggest film between Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Full Monty (close to Fantastic Beasts, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, Marvel Avengers Assemble and Quantum of Solace); (46th film to take £50m+ since 1997’s The Full Monty) and 117th biggest inflated between War of the Worlds and Ice Age III (close to Star Trek: The Movie, Mrs Doubtfire, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and The Flintstones).
Illumination’s 13th film since Despicable Me in 2010 taking over £400m at the UK BO and £425m inflated. Has overtaken Despicable Me 3 and Minions to become their biggest film in the UK. Next from Illumination Migration and Despicable Me 4 will be announced next year and will announce a Super Mario Bros sequel and spinoffs very soon.
5th biggest animated film between Frozen 2 and Shrek 2 (close to Incredibles 2, Minions, Despicable Me 3 and Despicable Me 2) and the 20th biggest inflated between Frozen and Ice Age III (close to The Lion King (1994), Chicken Run, Ice Age II and Toy Story).
Holding well despite being available to watch at home again, showing if it’s a film people want to see in the cinema, they will see it in the cinema.
- 5. Hypnotic – £217,252 – NE
Took £57k Friday (26.2%); £68k Saturday (31.3%); £92.2k Sunday (42.4%)
After having a disappointing opening in the US three weeks ago it was always expected to struggle in the UK. The film’s plot has been compared to Christopher Nolan’s Memento, which opened in October 2000 with £90,642 #11 from 20 screens taking £520,931.
Robert Rodriguez’s first film since 2019’s Alita: Battle Angel opened £3,198,180 #2 from 534 screens taking £9,168,390 and best known for directing 1996’s Desperado (opened £59,543 9 screens/£57,240 from 8 screens in London taking £698,751), 1996’s From Dusk Till Dawn (opened £501,303 taking £2,458,967); 1999’s The Faculty (opened £894,461 taking £4,197,214), 2001’s Spy Kids (opened £1,131,808 taking £6,810,722) and 2005’s Sin City (opened £2,452,299 taking £6,911,294).
Ben Affleck recently starred in Air opening with £1,174,554, taking £4,579,060.
Also Opened
Sisu – Sony Pictures
Opened #6 with £144,567 from 282 screens
Took £42k Friday (29%); £42k Saturday (29%); £60.5k Sunday (41.8%)
Another disappointing opening for a film receiving critical acclaim (94% on Rotten Tomatoes) the historical Finnish war film was acquired by Sony Pictures. The film premiered at Toronto Film Festival and was released in Finland in January and the US in April taking $7.2m and $3.8m internationally.
Box Office News
UK admissions for April were 11.45m up 5.8% from last year (10.82m) but 28% less than April 2019 (15.98m); 26.1% less than April 2018 (15.5m) and 26.6% less than April 2017 (15.6m). This has been a regular issue since cinemas reopened after COVID as audiences have become very selective in the films they are seeing in the cinema. Puss in Boots and Ant-Man 3 took 40%+ of February BO and Super Mario Bros took about 50% of April. While GOTG3 will take about 40% off May as both Fast X and The Little Mermaid will add far less to the month’s BO than expected.
The industry keeps saying it’s ‘not a sprint to recovery’ but a full recovery and growth won’t happen unless audiences see a wider range of films.
What doesn’t help is when the latest major film opens it plays on 6 screens of multiplexes with shows every 30 mins so most cinemas this week showed The Little Mermaid, Fast X, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 and Super Mario Bros in 90% of screens and the other films are squeezed into remaining few, so a film like Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret is only having one or twice random shows a day while The Little Mermaid has over 30.
UK box office in detail
This weekend’s top 10 box office took £9,809,374 down 5.2% from last weekend’s £10,340,735: 1,226,389 admissions down 5% from 1,290,635.
602nd biggest top 10 of the last 21 years (out of 1,104) between 15 June 2007 #1 Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer £4,137,169 (42.2% of top 10) and 01 June 2018 #1 Solo: A Star Wars Story £3,147,338 (32.1% of top 10) and 892nd biggest inflation inflated between 11 April 2008 #1 21 £1,649,855 (25.8% of top 10) and 14 October 2022 #1 Lyle, Lyle Crocodile £2,783,562 (29.4% of top 10).
The top 3 took £8,865,692 90.4% of the top 10; The Little Mermaid 51.1% (£5,012,929); Fast X 23% (£2,257,834); Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 16.3% (£1,594,929).
243rd highest percentage #1 between 07 January 2022 Spider-Man No Way Home (51.4%) and 20 March 2015 Home (51.1%).
497th biggest admissions #1 (628,975) between 01 April 2016 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (629,144) and 27 November 2015 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 (628,913).
Down 49.2% from 2022 (£19,286,684); Top Gun Maverick (£15,931,497); The Bob’s Burgers Movie (£346,592); #1 Top Gun Maverick 1st week £15,931,497 741 screens (82.6% of top 10)
2021; Lockdown
2020; Lockdown
Down 50.5% from 2019; (£19,827,784); Aladdin ( £7,066,773); Rocketman (£5,381,904); The Secret Life of Pets 2 (£3,490,598); #1 Aladdin 1st week £7,066,773 642 screens (35.64% of top 10)
Down 25.6% from 2018: (£13,192,041) Solo: A Star Wars Story (£6,061,231); Show Dogs (£546,405); The Breadwinner (£79,329); McKellen: Playing the Part Live 2018 (£41,110); #1 Solo: A Star Wars Story £6,061,231 1st week 680 screens (45.9% of top 10)
Down 1% from 2017: (£9,718,848); Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge (£5,238,049); Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul (£1,444,092); The Red Turtle (£91,997); The Other Side of Hope (£66,501); #1 Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge £5,238,049 634 screens 1st week (53.9% of top 10)
Up 10.5% from 2016: (£8,876,599); Alice Through the Looking Glass (£2,229,399); Money Monster (£820,829); Love and Friendship (£263,094); Minuscule: Valley of the Lost Ants (£97,647); Top Cat Begins (£69,784); Bobby (£1,061); #1 X-Men: Apocalypse £2,543,481 590 screens 2nd week 65% drop (28.6% of top 10)
Down 20.8% from 2015; (£12,383,288); San Andreas (£4,628,394); Man Up (£528,748); Danny Collins (£225,308); The Connection (£82,486); #1 San Andreas £4,628,394 505 screens 1st week (37.3% of top 10)
Down 38.1% from 2014: (£15,825,863); Maleficent (£6,590,071); Edge of Tomorrow (£1,886,096); A Million Ways to Die in the West (£1,240,465); Jimmy’s Hall (£131,703); Heaven is for Real (£7,762); #1 Maleficent £6,590,071 486 screens 1st week (41.6% of top 10)
Down 44% from 2013: (£17,517,641); The Hangover Part III (£5,964,619); Epic (£3,190,574); The Moth Diaries (£103,228); Something in the Air (£20,948); #1 The Hangover Part III £5,964,619 474 screens 1st week (34.1% of top 10)
Up 43.7% from 2012 (£6,824,026); Men in Black 3 (£2,935,736); What to Expect When You’re Expecting (£661,617); Moonrise Kingdom (£251,760); Iron Sky (£66,076); #1 Men in Black 3 £2,935,736 1st week 532 screens (43.1% of top 10)
Down 46.2% from 2011; (£18,230,336); The Hangover Part II (£10,409,017); Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (£1,476,720); #1 The Hangover Part II £10,409,017 1st week 469 screens (57.1% of top 10)
Down 28% from 2010: (£13,625,923); Sex and the City 2 (£6,142,718); The Tooth Fairy (£844,889); Space Chimps 2 (£434,883); The Losers (£391,938); Rec 2 (£70,367); #1 Sex and the City 2 £6,142,718 1st week 530 screens (45.1% of top 10)
Up 35.7% from 2009; (£7,228,664); Drag Me to Hell (£1,907,731); 12 Rounds (£326,804); Obsessed (£154,344); Jonas Brothers 3D Concert Experience (£117,060); Fireflies in the Garden (£20,828); #1 Night at the Museum 2 £2,054,769 520 screens 51% drop 2nd week (28.4% of top 10)
Down 40.3% from 2008; (£16,421,392); Sex and the City (£8,767,265); Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (£265,346); Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (£40,380); #1 Sex and the City £8,767,265 460 screens 1st weeks (53.4% of top 10)
Down 33.8% from 2007: (£14,816,587); Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (£11,634,860); Blitz (£266,148); Win Win (£155,463); Fire in Babylon (£107,312); Julia’s Eyes (£49,142); #1 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides £11,634,860 1st week 569 screens (78.5% of top 10)
Down 34.6% from 2006; (£15,005,037); X-Men: The Last Stand (£7,091,820); The Wild (£1,033,153); Curious George (£330,232); Friends with Money (£95,092); Down in the Valley (£39,803); Thief Lord (£38,737); #1 X-Men: The Last Stand £7,091,820 1st week 446 screens (47.2% of top 10)
Up 11.1% from 2005: (£8,828,190); House of Wax (£765,008); The Pacifier (£729,070); Millions (£293,032); It’s All Gone Pete Tong (£261,208); #1 Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith £5,427,091 2nd week 490 screens 62% drop (61.5% of top 10)
Down 15.1% from 2004 (£11,556,263); The Day After Tomorrow (£7,321,633); #1 The Day After Tomorrow £7,321,633 1st 429 screens (63.3% of top 10)
Up 52.1% from 2003 (£6,447,499); Bringing Down the House (£1,133,139); Ripley’s Game (£244,457); #1 The Matrix Reloaded £3,783,905 2nd week 481 screens 69% drop (58.6% of top 10)
Up 2.1% from 2002 (£9,615,592); Not Another Teen Movie (£635,805); Thunderpants (£430,913); Hart’s War (£129,484); #1 Star Wars Ep II – Attack of the Clones £5,955,017 468 screens 2nd week 48% drop (61.9% of top 10)
Next Week 2022 (£14,210,581); Men (£519,907); Hamlet – Met Opera 2022 (£27,446); Dashcam (£9,060); #1 Top Gun: Maverick £10,325,500 756 screens 2nd week 35% drop (8% without previews) (72.7% of top 10)
US Box Office
- The Little Mermaid – Disney
Opened with $95.57m ($117.5m 4 days); received mixed reviews (67% Rotten Tomatoes); A CinemaScore (as Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King)
IMAX/PLF took 26% and 3D took 14% (IMAX screens were split with Fast X)
Took $10.6m from Thursday midnights (including IMAX previews on Wednesday)
Aladdin took $7m and $31.3m Friday; Cinderella took $2.3n and $23M Friday; 2017’s Beauty and the Beast from 2017 took $16.3m and $63.7m Friday.
Pre-sales were ahead of Aladdin but about 30% less than Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King.
78th biggest opening between Joker and Captain America: The Winter Soldier (close to Iron Man, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Aladdin (2019).
EntTelligence reported The Little Mermaid had 7.4m admissions over three days and 9.2m over four with 59% of the weekend’s BO. The average price was $13.37 with $11.19 for children and matinees taking 35% of why Fast X took evening IMAX shows.
The biggest Memorial Day openings are 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick $160.5m; 2007’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End $153m; 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull $151.9m; 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand $122.9m. The Last Mermaid will become the 6th biggest, but as with extended openings in the UK, it’s impossible to make direct comparisons.
The Little Mermaid will become Disney’s sixth live-action reimagining to open with over $100m opening after The Lion King ($191.77m); Beauty and the Beast ($174.7m) but ahead of Alice in Wonderland ($116.1m), The Jungle Book ($103.3m) but as with 2019’s and Aladdin ($116.8m) will do it from 4 days, not 3. It is impossible to compare The Little Mermaid’s opening with films opening 16 years ago. Of course, it didn’t stop the industry from doing that exact thing as they always do.
Ahead of opening The Little Mermaid was expected to open with $180m worldwide with $120m from the extended Memorial Day weekend in the US playing in 400 IMAX, 900 PLF, 2,800 3D and 265 D-Box/4DX screens. As most films open ahead of these estimates do believe the industry is lowballing estimates to make it look like these films are opening bigger than they are as you only need to compare its opening to other recent Disney reimaginations like Aladdin and The Lion King similarly based on the beloved animated films released in 1992 and 1994 only a couple of years after The Little Mermaid in 1989.
1989’s The Little Mermaid opened with $6.03m taking $111.54m and $211.34m WW
Rob Marshall previously directed 2018’s Mary Poppins Returns (opened $23.52m taking $171.95m and $349.54m WW), 2014’s Into the Woods (opened $31.05m taking $128m and $212.9m WW); 2011’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (opened $90.15m taking $241.07m and $1.046bn WW); 2005’s Memoirs of a Geisha (took $57.49m and $162.24m WW) and 2002’s Chicago (took $170.68m and $306.77m WW)
Opened with $68.3m from 51 territories; Mexico $8.5m; UK $6.3m; Italy $4.7m; Brazil $4m; Australia $4m; China $2.5m.
Excuses were made because the film was reviewed and bombed in France, Korea and Germany which received a high amount of negative audience scores, but this could be simply due to audiences weren’t impressed with it as have got bored of Disney remaking their animated films in new packaging.
- Fast X – Universal Pictures
Dropped 66% in the second weekend taking $23.02m and $107.96m
2021’s Fast 9 dropped 67.2% $23m and $116.11m of $173m and $726.22m WW
2019’s Hobbs & Shaw dropped 57.9% $25.26m and $108.37m of $174m and $760.73m WW
2017’s Fate of the Furious dropped 61.1% $38.4m and $163.3m of $226m and $1.236bn WW
2015’s Fast 7 dropped 59.5% $59.58m and $251.51m of $353m and $1.515bn WW
2013’s Fast and Furious 6 dropped 63.9% $35.16m of $238.67m and $788.67m WW
2011’s Fast Five dropped 62.4% and $32.44m $139.77m of $209.83m and $626.13m WW
2009’s Fast and Furious dropped 61.6% $27.23m and $116.49m of $155.06m and $360.36m WW
2006’s The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift dropped 59.1% $9.8m and $43.14m of $62.51m and $158.96m WW
2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious dropped 63% $18.67m and $83.58m of $127.15m and $236.35m WW
2001’s The Fast and the Furious dropped 50% $20.05m and $77.86m of $144.53m and $207.28m WW
345th biggest second weekend between Snow White and the Huntsman ($23.05m) and F9: The Fast Saga ($23.01m) close to No Time to Die, Armageddon, The Matrix and The Fugitive.
645th biggest between The Addams Family (1991) and The Patriot; 1,219th biggest inflated between Bull Durham and 102 Dalmatians; 7th biggest 2023 film between The Little Mermaid and Scream VI; 95th biggest Universal Pictures between Fifty Shades Darker and The Bourne Legacy.
The 11 Fast and Furious films have taken over $1.98bn in the US and over $7.12bn worldwide.
The box office of the Fast and the Furious franchises highlights the way global BO has changed over the last 20+ years and the impact China has had on the global box office.
The first four films performed far stronger in the US than internationally, but after the success of Tokyo Drift producers expanded the franchise globally; 66% of 2011’s Fast Five box office internationally; 69.7% of 2013’s Fast and Furious 6 box office came from internationally; franchise exploded with 2017’s Furious 7 taking 76.7% internationally taking $391m in China and $1.51bn worldwide; 81.7% of 2017’s The Fate of the Furious came from international with $392.8m from China and $1.236m worldwide; 77.1% of 2019’s Hobbs & Shaw $760.73m came from international $586.77m Vs $173.95m US; 76.2% of 2021’s F9 $726.22m came from internationally $553.22m Vs $173m with $216.93m from China opening with $136m almost double Fast X opening.
2023 studios
Universal $1.03bn; Disney $658.6m; Lionsgate $309.6m; 20th Century Studios $283.1m; Paramount $261.8m; Warner Bros notably absent this year as their biggest 2023 releases Evil Dead Rise $66.2m; Shazam! Fury of the Gods $57.63m; Magic Mike’s Last Dance $26m; House Party $9m have mostly underwhelmed, but with The Flash, Barbie, The Meg 2: The Trench, The Nun 2, Dune: Part 2, Wonka and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom the second half of the year is much stronger.
The industry calls out films like Fast X taking $500m as a hit, but with a budget of over $340m and marketing costs of over $150m films like these need to take over $1bn worldwide before turning a profit.
Universal likely gave exhibitors similar terms to exhibitors for Fast X as Super Mario Bros either a flat fee of 63% rental for the entire run or 63% in the opening weekend and then a sliding scale dropping down to 35% after a few weeks. As previous films were front-loaded exhibitors would have chosen a 63% flat fee, but it gets complicated as with 75%+ of BO from international with 40% from China its rental is about 20%. Fast 9 took $217m in China but Universal’s rental was about $45m.
It won’t be the same for Indy 5 as Yogurt said in Spaceballs ‘merchandising, where the real money from the movie is made’ as Disney will take $8bn+ global BO this year but will be dwarfed by the $60bn+ Disney will make from merchandising sales with another $30bn from theme parks.
Films like Indy 5, The Little Mermaid, Avatar 2 and Haunted Mansion are just software for the hardware of merchandise and theme parks, as Sony hoped after buying Columbia Pictures in 1989 films would be software to Sony’s hardware but weren’t able to exploit anywhere nearly as much as Disney has done over the last decade.
Took $87.3m (58% drop) from 84 territories $401.36m total and $507.26m worldwide; China $110.1m; Mexico $28.4m; France $13m; Brazil $17.2m; India $13.7m; UK $12.9m; Japan $14.7m; Germany $11.6m; Korea $10.9m.
Took $32m worldwide from IMAX including $23.8m internationally.
228th biggest worldwide between Terminator 2: Judgment Day and The Grinch; 3rd biggest 2023 between Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania; 27th biggest Universal Pictures between Meet the Fockers and The Grinch.
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 – Disney
Dropped 36% in the fourth weekend taking $20.81m and $300.28m
GOTG3 is 18% behind last year’s Doctor Strange 2 which had taken $305.5m at the same point of $374.7m total.
49th biggest fourth weekend between Finding Dory and Captain Marvel ($20.6m) close to Avengers: Age of Ultron ($21.69m), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ($20.9m), Iron Man 3 ($19.32m) and Joker ($19.24m).
94th biggest between Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End and Independence Day; 2nd biggest 2023 film between The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania; 221st biggest inflated between Sister Act and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2; 32nd biggest comic-book film between Iron Man 2 and Man of Steel; 36th biggest Disney film between Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.
Fourth Weekends
2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 1 dropped 31.5% taking $17.2m (returned to #1 in 4th weekend) and $251.45m 75.5% of $333.17m
2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 dropped 39.7% taking $20.9m (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales #1 $62.98m) and $334.22m 85.7% of $389.81m
8th biggest MCU fourth weekend between Black Panther Wakanda Forever ($21m) and Captain Marvel ($20.6m) close to Avengers Infinity War, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Iron Man and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2).
2014’s GOTG took $333.7m US, $439.6m internationally and $773.3m worldwide; GOTG2 took $389.8m US, $473.09m internationally and $863.8m worldwide, so GOTG3 should take $1bn+ worldwide.
Took $25.1m from 52 territories and $431.6m internationally and $731m worldwide; China $79.8m; UK $39.8m; Mexico $33.7m; Korea $30.2m; France $26.6m.
125th biggest worldwide between The Matrix Reloaded and Up; 33rd biggest comic book worldwide between Suicide Squad and Captain America: The Winter Soldier; 41st biggest Disney film between Monsters University and Up.
- Super Mario Bros – Universal Pictures
Dropped 33% in the eighth weekend taking $6.41m and $559.02m
55th biggest eighth weekend between The Greatest Showman and As Good as It Gets (close to Back to the Future, Jurassic Park, Aladdin (2019) and Jumanji: The Next Level).
2nd biggest animated film between Incredibles 2 and Finding Dory; the 14th biggest film between Incredibles 2 and The Lion King (2019); the 41st biggest inflated between Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and National Lampoon’s Animal House; 2nd biggest Universal Pictures film between Jurassic World and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
Universal Pictures gave exhibitors two options when they booked Super Mario Bros either a flat fee of 63% rental for the entire run or 63% in the opening weekend and then a sliding scale dropping down to 35% after a few weeks.
17 Illumination Entertainment films have taken $3.7bn in the US and $9.32bn worldwide.
Took $13.1m from 81 territories and $727.42m and $1.279bn worldwide; Mexico $84.7m; Japan $73.7m; UK $64.7m; France $57.2m; Germany $52.6m.
3rd biggest animated worldwide between Frozen and Incredibles 2; the 20th biggest worldwide between Frozen and Beauty and the Beast (2017); 4th biggest Universal Pictures film between Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and The Fate of the Furious.
- About My Father – Lionsgate
Opened $4.32m; received poor reviews (32% Rotten Tomatoes); B+ CinemaScore
The Sebastian Maniscalco comedy received a positive reaction at CinemaCon and was compared to Meet the Parents with Robert De Niro having a similar role but without the cat scenes.
UK Box Office Top 10
UK Box Office Preview
After a lucrative half-term week taking more Mon-Thurs (£6m+) than its opening weekend (£5.01m) The Little Mermaid will drop about 30% in its second weekend similar to 2019’s Aladdin taking £3.2m-£3.8m will see it taking about E15m after 10 days.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will be a close second having a day opening weekend. 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse opened £2,279,995 (including £1.05m from 6 days of previews) #2 from 567 screens taking £10,040,340; #1 Aquaman £5,230,285 (including £1.4m previews). It’s tracking to open with $80m in the US, but unlikely to open as big in the UK, that said advance bookings for Thursday and Friday look stronger than The Little Mermaid.
The two films are playing to two very different audiences The Little Mermaid to tween and teen girls and Spider-Man playing to tween and teen boys, but will depend on the crossover audience of the two. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse wasn’t as big a hit in the UK but of course, after the huge success of Spider-Man No Way Home in 2019 it’s likely to open far bigger despite opening with two fewer days. With Transformers: Rise of the Beasts opening the week after and The Flash the following weekend and receiving very positive buzz these three films could cannibalize each other.
Horror has been a steady performing genre since cinemas re-opened after COVID with 18 horrors opening over the last two years taking over £100m; Evil Dead Rises, The Pope’s Exorcist, Scream VI, Knock at the Cabin, M3gan, The Menu, Prey For The Devil, Halloween Ends, Smile, Nope, The Black Phone, Scream, Halloween Kills, Candyman, Old, The Forever Purge, A Quiet Place Part II and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It.
The Boogeyman should open similarly to last year’s Smile (opening £1,860,452 and taking £11,584,505) and Evil Dead Rises £1,477,840 taking £5,288,972.
Stephen King film adaptions have had mixed success at the BO from the huge success with the two It films but then mixed success with Doctor Sleep, The Mist, Carrie, Pet Sematary and most recently Firestarter last year opened £250,006 taking £530,497.
Opening in two weeks
- Asteroid City – Universal Pictures
Sci-fi romantic comedy-drama with an ensemble cast including Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Margot Robbie and Jeff Goldblum and directed by Wes Anderson.
It had the world premiere at Cannes Film Festival receiving positive reviews.
It’s the first film directed by Wes Anderson to be released by Universal Pictures/Focus Features since 2012 Moonrise Kingdom.
2021’s The French Dispatch opened #6 with £867,672 from 315 screens taking £4,167,060
2018’s Isle of Dogs £1,641,509 on 487 screens (£194,905 from previews) taking £6,009,438
2014’s The Grand Budapest Hotel opened £1,532,239 on 287 screens (dropped only 20% in the second weekend taking £1,309,103 adding 90 screens and £4,115,618) taking £10,978,014
2009’s Fantastic Mr. Fox opened on 481 screens for £1,517,312 (increased 2% in second weekend taking £1,545,325 (due to half-term) £5,589,484) taking £8,707,283.
2012’s Moonrise Kingdom opened #7 £251,760 from 163 screens (dropped 16% in the second weekend £210,804 and £724,870) taking £1,378,748
2007’s The Darjeeling Limited opened £435,198 #6 from 192 screens (dropped 36% in the second weekend £275,582 and £957,194) taking £1,323,698
2004’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou opened £455,722 #9 from 207 screens taking £1,323,544
2002’s The Royal Tenenbaums opened #4 £700,025 from 169 screens taking £2,674,161
1998’s Rushmore took £424,055
- No Hard Feelings – Sony Pictures
A coming-of-age raunchy comedy starring Jennifer Lawrence, and Andrew Barth Feldman. Appearing in supporting roles are Matthew Broderick, Laura Benanti and Natalie Morales and directed by Gene Stupnitsky.
The trailer looks like the film is similar to 2006’s Failure to Launch opened £874,999 #2 352 screens taking £2,657,334; 2010’s Life As We Know It opened £985,558 #2 395 screens taking £3,291,887; 2011’s Bad Teacher £1,958,656 #3 395 screens taking £7,642,887
It’s Jennifer Lawrence’s first film since X-Men: Dark Pheonix and her first rom-com since 2011’s Silver Lining Playbook.
Gene Stupnitsky previously directed 2019’s Good Boys opened £844,169 #6 474 screens taking £3,069,323.
- Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny – Disney (Wednesday)
Action-adventure sequel to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull starring Harrison Ford, John Rhys-Davies, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Antonio Banderas, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Toby Jones, Boyd Holbrook and Mads Mikkelsen and directed by James Mangold.
Learning lessons from Solo: A Star Wars Story that only Harrison Ford can be Indiana Jones Lucasfilm used de-ageing technology and used unused footage from previous films.
Dial of Destiny is the first of the film series not directed by Steven Spielberg or written by George Lucas. Disney acquired rights for Indiana Jones in 2013 from Paramount Pictures in exchange for Jerry Bruckheimer moving to Paramount. Jerry Bruckheimer had huge success at Disney in the 90s (including Crimson Tide, The Rock, Armageddon, Enemy of the State, Coyote Ugly and Pearl Harbour in his first 7 years) previously having huge success at Paramount Pictures in the 80s. Paramount receive an in-association credit on the film similar to having their logo on Iron Man 3 after Disney brought Marvel in 2009 with Disney releasing the film paying a $50m distribution fee to Paramount.
Steven Spielberg and George Lucas originally had plans for four sequels to Raiders of the Lost Ark
Filming started for the fifth film in June 2021 wrapping production in February 2022 with a budget of over $300m making it one of the most expensive films ever made; in comparison, Raiders of the Lost Ark cost $20m in 1982; 1984’s Temple of Doom $28m; 1989’s Last Crusade $48m and 2018’s Kingdom of the Crystal Skull $185m.
It was originally set to be released on July 19th 2019, in 2017 it was pushed back to 2020 and then in 2018 to 2021 after Steven Spielberg dropped out from directing in 2020 deciding to directed West Side Story instead.
Received its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival getting mixed reviews, it was surprising to premiere the film at Cannes with its release date 6 weeks later, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull also premiered at Cannes in 2008 but opened a week later, while Temple of Doom and Last Crusade also opened in May in the US over Memorial Day Weekend, having a staggered international release, as films used to do. The Last Crusade opened the same day as Dial of Destiny in 1989.
Despite receiving mixed reception at Cannes Film Festival, the film is the most anticipated film of the summer in the US according to recent research by Morning Consult.
The film received a five-minute standing ovation at Cannes Film Festival similar to Top Gun Maverick last year, Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis received 10 minutes, Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 7 minutes and was seen as disappointing as previous Inglourious Basterds received 11. The longest-standing ovations at Cannes have been Pan’s Labyrinth 22, Fahrenheit 9/11 20, Mud 18, The Neon Demon 17, Capernaum 15, and The Paperboy 15.
Raiders of the Lost Ark was the #7 biggest film in the UK taking £3.31m (£17.1m inflated) and #1 in the US; #1 Superman II; #2 For Your Eyes Only; #3 Flash Gordon; #4 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; #5 Any Which Way You Can; #6 Clash of the Titans; #7 Private Benjamin; #8 Raiders of the Lost Ark; #9 The Elephant Man; #10 Tess.
Temple of Doom was #1 biggest film in the UK taking £9.25m (£41.3m inflated) and #2 in the US (behind Ghostbusters); #2 Never Say Never; #3 The Jungle Book; #4 Police Academy; #5 Sudden Impact; #6 Terms of Endearment; #7 Educating Rita; #8 Trading Places; #9 Greystoke: The Legend of the Apes; #10 Jaws III.
The Last Crusade was #1 biggest film in the UK (£15.92m) and #2 in the US (behind Batman); #2 Who Framed Roger Rabbit (£15.61m); #3 Batman (£12.03m); #4 Rain Man (£9.66m); #5 The Naked Gun (£7.74m); #6 Licence to Kill (£7.55m); #7 Lethal Weapon 2 (£6.74m); #8 Twins (£6.55m); #9 Dead Poets Society (£5.87m); #10 Cocktail (£5.76m).
It had the third biggest opening (£1.73m/£6.1m inflated) in 1989 after Batman (£2.058m/£7.2m inflated) and Back to the Future Part II (£20.51m/£7.1m inflated) and just ahead of Ghostbusters 2 (£1.41m) and Lethal Weapon 2 (£1.33m). It opened the same day as Dial of Destiny in June 1989, a month after opening in the US. The film broke BO records at the Empire Leicester Square, taking almost £200k in its opening 5 days.
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was #4 biggest film in the UK (£40.28m) and #3 in the US ($317.1m); #1 Mamma Mia! (£68.9m); #2 Quantum of Solace (£51.1m); #3 The Dark Knight (£49.31m); #4 The Crystal Skull; #5 Sex and the City (£26.23m); #6 Hancock (£24.41m); #7 Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (£23.3m); #8 High School Musical 3 (£22.63m); #9 Wall·E (£22.2m); #10 Kung Fu Panda (£19.63m).
It had the second biggest opening (£12.22m) in 2018 after Quantum of Solace (£15.38m) and ahead of The Dark Knight (£11.19m).
Other major legacy sequels openings include Top Gun: Maverick (£15,924,629), Jurassic World (£19,350,727 including £2,514,284 previews), Star Wars The Force Awakens (£34,011,849 including £9,679,746 previews), Spider-Man No Way Home (£31,899,232 including £12,388,380 previews), Independence Day Resurgence (£5,067,855 including £944,356 previews), Ghostbusters Afterlife (£4,314,263 including £549,710 previews), Mad Max: Fury Road (£4,538,933 including £638,690 previews) and Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle (£8,154,548 including £4,114,058 previews).
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull has the 68th-biggest opening between Thor: Love and Thunder and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (close to Deadpool 2, Fast & Furious 7, Jurassic World Dominion and Star Wars: Attack of the Clones) and 39th biggest inflated between Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Spider-Man 3.
In 2008 it was the 15th biggest opening in the UK between LOTR: The Two Towers and The Matrix Reloaded and the 18th biggest inflated between Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End and Spider-Man 3.
You can give the same reasons why audiences are attracted to legacy sequels to the speech in Field of Dreams “Ray, people will come Ray. They’ll come to Iowa for reasons they can’t even fathom. They’ll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they’re doing it. They’ll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. Of course, we won’t mind if you look around, you’ll say. It’s only $20 per person. They’ll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they’ll walk out to the bleachers; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They’ll find they have reserved seats somewhere along with one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they’ll watch the game and it’ll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters.”
As with Disney’s Star Wars and Avatar films despite all the hype and expectation for Indiana Jones along with its huge budget, the cinema release is just a tiny part of the film’s journey as well as Disney’s profits as merchandising and theme parks are where the real money is made a Disney will make almost 6 times as much from merchandising this year to worldwide box office.
Would expect Dial of Destiny to have a similar opening as Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (£12,227,799) and with Disney releasing their Pixar film Elemental the week after probably don’t expect it to have legs as Top Gun Maverick. But they could help each other as they play to different demographics as The Flash, No Hard Feelings, Asteroid City and Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken as happened over the weeks after Top Gun Maverick opened.
Dial of Destiny is one of a number of films opening midweek to inflate their opening weekend, Dial of Destiny, No Hard Feelings, Speak No Evil, The Nun 2 on Wednesday. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts open Thursday. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One Tuesday and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem Monday.