Main Information
The Disney film “Wish” was launched in third place at the box office during the Thanksgiving holiday, earning $19.5 million over the three-day weekend and $31.7 million over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday.
Before the film’s opening on November 22, Deadline and Variety predicted that it would earn around $50 million during the five-day Thanksgiving holiday, and the production cost of the film was $200 million.
“Wish” failed to generate higher revenue than other Disney films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, as its revenue exceeded several unsuccessful films like “Strange World” and “Raya and the Last Dragon,” and did not surpass the revenues of the seven films that made over $45 million in their opening weekend during the 2010s.
Although animated films produced by Pixar usually perform better at the box office, “Wish” did not reach the opening weekend revenues of any of them, even films from the 1990s without accounting for inflation.
Main Reasons for the Film’s Failure
The failure of “Wish” is attributed to several reasons, as Deadline pointed out that the film’s promotional material did not clearly convey its story, and that its concept is considered a “deliverable princess film” with “strange supporting characters (a talking goat and a balloon star)” derived from other Disney animated films.
Some critics noted that the film, which aimed to celebrate the centenary of Walt Disney, feels more like a “commercial product” rather than a magical event, and that it is a “troubled attempt to recapture some cinematic magic.”
A film distribution analyst who preferred to remain anonymous pointed out that the audience is likely waiting to watch “Wish” at home when it streams on Disney+, noting that the studio failed to create an urgent need for audiences to go to theaters and criticized the film for being “more about celebrating the company’s birthday than being compelling content.”
Disney CEO Bob Iger acknowledged his company’s box office difficulties during an earnings call earlier this month, noting that the company “lost some focus” by concentrating on quantity over quality and will shift towards focusing on quality direction.
Main Background
“Wish” opened in theaters just two weeks after another unsuccessful Disney film this year, “The Marvels,” which earned disappointing revenues of $46.1 million in its opening weekend, marking the worst opening weekend performance in the U.S. for any film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and less than one-third of the opening weekend revenues of “Captain Marvel,” which was released in 2019 and was its predecessor. Some industry experts attribute the film’s failure to achieve success to “increased fatigue from superhero films.” “The Marvels” has earned $188 million worldwide to date, far from the more than $1.1 billion garnered by “Captain Marvel,” along with many other Marvel films that are always considered successful. Another unsuccessful Disney film this year is “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” which only made $60 million in its opening weekend and grossed $383 million worldwide, which is disappointing considering its budget of nearly $300 million. “Dial of Destiny” is the worst-performing Indiana Jones film at the domestic box office, not accounting for inflation, even though it was released over 40 years after the original film. “Haunted Mansion” was the last unsuccessful film this year, earning only $24 million in its opening weekend in the U.S. and $117 million worldwide against a budget of $150 million. The failure to attract an audience for “Haunted Mansion” may be due to its July release, which was hindered by the ongoing actors’ strike from promoting it, with some industry experts believing that the film would have performed better during the Halloween season. The other Disney films released this year, “The Little Mermaid” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” were also considered disappointing for not meeting industry expectations despite earning more than double their budget.
Critics
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The film “Wish” received only a 50% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the worst-rated Disney animated films of all time. According to critics’ ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, although the film “warmly references many classics produced by the studio,” the focus on nostalgia “is not a substitute for the real magic in storytelling.” Vulture critic Bilge Ebirie wrote that the film “fails on every level,” noting that it is “the ultimate opportunism – a dull and uninspired failure from a rote brand management.” The Daily Beast critic, RR Daoud, described the film as “fragile as a star-studded poster on a wall” due to its weak characters, lackluster songs, and focus on Disney’s centenary instead of a cohesive story.
Stunning Facts
Disney experienced an even bigger box office failure during the Thanksgiving holiday last year. The animated film “Strange World” earned $11.9 million on its opening weekend and $18.6 million over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday. Variety magazine had predicted that the film would earn up to $40 million during Thanksgiving, which would still be a weak performance for a movie with a production cost of $180 million. According to the report, “Strange World” needed to earn $360 million globally to recoup its production costs, but after its theatrical run, it only made $73 million. According to Deadline, “Strange World” was the biggest box office flop of 2022, with losses estimated at about $197 million for Disney.
What to Watch For
It will be interesting to see if Disney’s shift to focus on quality rather than quantity will help improve box office performance. Only one Marvel film is set to hit theaters in 2024, which is the highly anticipated “Deadpool 3,” a sequel in the “Deadpool” series that has grossed over $700 million at the global box office. Disney released four Marvel films in 2021 and three in 2022 and 2023. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore, told CNBC that “focusing on quality over quantity” is what Disney needs to boost its Marvel films’ box office revenues.
Further Reading
‘Songbirds & Snakes’ Reigns Supreme Over Thanksgiving Stretch With $42M 5-day; ‘Napoleon’ Steps On Disney’s ‘Wish’ With $32M+ — Box Office (Deadline)
Disney’s box office problems ramp up pressure on CEO Bob Iger and studio chief Alan Bergman (CNBC)
How Disney can save the Marvel Cinematic Universe (CNBC)
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