Disney's 'Strange World' to lose USD 100 million in theatrical run; Check out why
Nov 28, 2022
Washington [US], November 28 : Over Thanksgiving, Disney's 'Strange World' tanked at the box office.
With USD 11.9 million from 4,174 North American theatres over the weekend and USD 18.6 million over the five-day holiday period, the animated film dramatically underperformed expectations for its North American release, as per Variety.
The film was anticipated to bring in USD 30 million to USD 40 million between Wednesday and Sunday, and even those numbers wouldn't have been particularly impressive, to begin with.
According to Variety, Strange World's inaugural box office numbers now rank as one of Disney's worst opening weekends in recent times, coming in slightly behind fellow family films like 'Encanto' (USD 27.2 million over the traditional weekend and USD 40 million during the extended Thanksgiving holiday stretch) and 'Lightyear' (USD 51 million) and just barely ahead of its pandemic-era release 'West Side Story' (USD 10.5 million).
"Normally this time of year, a Disney family film is the big draw," Paul Dergarabedian, a senior Comscore analyst told Variety.
"It shows we're still recovering and adapting to the constraints of the pandemic."
Even with proper promotion on Disney+ and home entertainment platforms, box office analysts predict it will be challenging to turn a profit on the high-budget movie.
According to Variety, sources have said that 'Strange World' needs to make about USD 360 million in revenue to break even because it cost USD 180 million to produce and tens of millions more in global marketing and distribution fees.
"This is a weak opening by Disney animation standards," David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research told Variety.
"At a cost of USD 180 million, plus marketing expenses, the film will finish in the red, even with good ancillary income."
