Box Office: ‘Red One’ Has Itself a Fairly Little Opening Day With $10.9 Million

As a seasoned film enthusiast with over three decades of attending cinemas under my belt, I must say that the opening weekend numbers for “Red One” are a bit like finding a lump of coal in your Christmas stocking. With a budget of $250 million and lukewarm reception, it’s hard not to feel a tinge of disappointment. But let’s face it, Amazon has more money than Scrooge McDuck swimming in gold coins, so I suppose they can afford a few duds like this one.

The opening weekend earnings for Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans’ big-budget Christmas action film “Red One” are starting to resemble an estimated $30 million, which is on the lower end of predictions. On its premiere day and initial showings, the Amazon MGM Studios production generated approximately $10.9 million from 4,032 theaters in North America.

It appears that a less than favorable outcome isn’t what was expected for this special-effects movie, which is being screened in premium large format auditoriums and boasts a massive $250 million production budget, not to mention significant marketing expenses. Unless “Red One,” produced by Seven Bucks, manages to remain popular amidst the barrage of upcoming releases like “Wicked,” “Gladiator II,” and “Moana 2” before Thanksgiving, it seems doubtful that it will make a profit during its theatrical run.

It’s worth pondering if Amazon is greatly concerned about modest box office earnings given its market value exceeding $2 trillion. In such a context, the expense of “Red One” appears less intimidating. Amazon made a substantial investment in this project back in 2021, hoping it would be a blockbuster on Prime Video during the holiday season. Furthermore, by boosting its e-commerce business during the shopping spree, it also serves as a bonus benefit. Interestingly, “Red One” was initially produced exclusively for Prime Video; any box office earnings are likely just additional gifts to Amazon in this scenario.

For Amazon MGM’s latest production, “Red One,” is poised to have the most successful opening weekend at the box office since “Creed III,” a film produced under MGM’s previous leadership and released only a year after its acquisition. In comparison, “Red One” appears to be on a more promising trajectory than Apple’s spring release, “Argylle,” another high-priced action movie with potential for a franchise. “Argylle” had an estimated production cost of $200 million and grossed $96 million worldwide before airing on Apple TV+, a platform with much smaller reach compared to Amazon Prime.

Nevertheless, there’s some skepticism surrounding “Red One” as an indication of its stars’ box office appeal. The movie is unlikely to surpass the opening weekends of either of Johnson’s previous two films, “Black Adam” ($67 million) and “Jungle Cruise” ($35 million), with the latter also being released on Disney+ for premium rental simultaneously. Furthermore, it doesn’t represent a triumphant return to the big screen for Evans, whose post-Captain America live-action roles have primarily been streamed since he completed his tenure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Titled “Red One,” this film is helmed by Jake Kasdan and revolves around a group of battle-hardened experts who embark on a mission to save a kidnapped Santa Claus (portrayed by J.K. Simmons). The movie received unfavorable reviews from critics, but audiences seem to find it quite enjoyable, giving it an A- grade according to Cinema Score, a pollster of moviegoers. To continue captivating the public, it needs to remain on their ‘nice list.’

In its fourth week, Sony’s “Venom: The Last Dance” is expected to move down to the second spot on the domestic box office charts, earning approximately $6.1 million and seeing a 61% drop in revenue. The Marvel spin-off has already grossed over $120 million in North America and more than $400 million worldwide. Despite a less-than-stellar start, it appears that the film may not be too far behind its franchise prequel “Let There Be Carnage,” which concluded with a global gross of $500 million.

In “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” the third week is projected to see a significant decrease of approximately 54%, resulting in a revenue drop of around $6 million. However, The Kingdom Story Company’s production is expected to surpass the $20 million mark domestically shortly after the weekend, making it another successful theatrical performer for Lionsgate. This success comes despite a relatively modest production budget of $10 million.

In a predicted shift, A24’s psychological thriller “Heretic” is likely to land in fourth position, as competitors anticipate a second-week box office take of approximately $4.6 million. This represents a significant decrease of about 57%. Additionally, the Hugh Grant horror film is expected to surpass the $20 million mark by Monday’s end.

As a cinephile, I’m excited to share that Universal’s “The Wild Robot” seems poised to secure a spot among the top five earners this week, with an estimated decline of around 32% for another $4.5 million. This DreamWorks Animation gem is still holding strong in its eighth weekend, maintaining its position at the box office summit. By Sunday, it’s projected to reach a domestic total of approximately $137 million, surpassing “A Quiet Place: Day One” starring Lupita Nyong’o ($138 million) and cementing itself as the 12th highest-grossing North American release of the year.

2024-11-16 19:17

Box Office: ‘Red One’ Has Itself a Fairly Little Opening Day With $10.9 Million

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