F1 and M3GAN 2.0: two very different movies, two very different outcomes.
Led by Brad Pitt, the storytelling of F1 didn’t veer far off the expected beats of a sports movie. But, fortunately for filmmaker Joseph Kosinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, F1 also didn’t have to reinvent the wheel, instead delivering something “you had to see in the theater, not just wait for it to show up on streaming,” says Richard Rushfield. Case in point, over half of the film’s $55 million haul in North America came from premium large-format screens, such as IMAX. Richard’s takeaway: “Give people an experience.”
M3GAN 2.0, on the other hand, fizzled. The original went viral in January 2022 and booted up $30 million in its debut. However, despite a better CinemaScore (B+ to the original’s B), audiences neglected the wild android her second time around. The movie grossed just $10 million and finished fourth at the box office. “It’s rare that I get baffled,” Sean McNulty says. “I really don’t have a clear [reason]” for why it flopped. One potential culprit: What was once viral became all too “familiar,” Richard says.
Elsewhere in our Monday Morning Quarterbacks breakdown of the box office: Why Elio’s struggle, among other factors, may be tied to a tragic plot point Disney had to market around. Plus: How F1 could cement Mike & Pam’s ability to withstand a flop later this year, and what to expect from next weekend’s holiday box office when Jurassic World Rebirth stomps into theaters.
Make sure you’re subscribed to get notified when Monday Morning QBs go live on Mondays, and download the app, where you can also see all of The Ankler’s team posting on Substack’s social feed, Notes.
Share this post