It seems American audiences have grown tired of low-quality, preachy films, as evidenced by the notably poor performance at the box office this year.
So far, the 2024 box office is down 22 percent from last year, and a staggering 42 percent from 2019, the last year before the pandemic. Despite being three years removed from the pandemic, box office numbers haven’t bounced back to normal levels. The main reason for this is widely agreed upon: lackluster film quality. Hollywood’s favor has eroded due to a string of unappealing, preachy, and controversial movies, leading audiences to seek other forms of entertainment.
This weekend had high hopes pinned on the collaboration between director John Krasinski and star Ryan Reynolds in a family movie about imaginary friends becoming real. The film If, with a $110 million budget (excluding marketing), was expected to open with at least $40 million but managed only $35 million. Internationally, it earned a modest $20 million.
To break even, If likely needs to surpass $350 million in revenue. While this is improbable, it’s not entirely out of the question, especially given the slight uptick in box office numbers after a slow start, indicating positive word of mouth.
Parents may still be hesitant to take their children to family films without prior assurance, given Disney’s recent controversial family movies. The box office of If may have seen a late boost as parents discovered it lacked the elements they found objectionable, passing on this information among themselves.
The biggest disappointment of the weekend was the biopic of late blues singer Amy Winehouse, Back to Black, which opened with a dismal $2.9 million. Jukebox musicals can be hit or miss, and this one failed primarily due to its focus. While Winehouse was talented, her fanbase was not extensive enough to draw large audiences, which is crucial for the success of such films.
The only real success this weekend was the launch of the first of a prequel trilogy of slasher films based on 2008’s The Strangers, a moderately successful original.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 opened with $12.5 million, a modest figure but substantial given its $8.5 million production cost. The subsequent parts of the trilogy are already filmed and will be released later this year.
After two weekends, the latest Planet of the Apes film has barely crossed the $100 million mark.
Godzilla x King: The New Empire still hasn’t reached $200 million after eight weekends.
Despite the abundance of content, much of it fails to resonate with or attract mainstream audiences.
