Any movie that comes with a $100 million price tag that isn’t somehow franchise affiliated is going down a very, very slippery road, and could easily crash and burn. Such has been the case with the newest blockbuster burnout, the disaster movie GEOSTORM. The movie floundered with critics and has tanked at the box office, and the loss for the studio will be a disaster in its own right.
The movie opened to a dismal $13 million, which is all the more upsetting given the movie’s $120 million budget, with $15 million tacked on for extensive reshoots. The movie has earned $66 million worldwide so far, but based on the budget it will have to make $300-$350 million to break even. The Gerard Butler vehicle still has China left to open in, but there is little hope the country can save the movie, and it’s predicted that the movie may only make about $200 million worldwide, meaning the movie will likely end up $100 million in the hole.
Though horrible reviews are one reason the movie has failed at the box office, another finger can be pointed at the movie’s marketing, which was minimal given the size of the movie and in large part due to Warner Bros. shifting the release date several times. This will be the second massive flop for WB this year, coming off a big hit after KING ARTHUR: LEGEND OF THE SWORD made only $148 million worldwide (far less than even the 2004 version) off a $175 million budget.
However, not all is bad news for WB, as they shared financing with Skydance and RatPac, and the three will share in the losses. On top of that, WB has actually had a fantastic year, with WONDER WOMAN, IT, DUNKIRK and ANNABELLE: CREATION all exceeding expectations, earning the studio over $2.3 billion at the global box office. That, and the studio still has JUSTICE LEAGUE coming next month, which will add to their great year making the loss of GEOSTORM seem like an afterthought.
Though the studios won’t take such a big hit after splitting the difference, this is still evidence of a bigger problem where studios put far too much money into risky products. Other $100 million-budgeted bombs this year include MONSTER TRUCKS, GHOST IN THE SHELL and VALERIAN AND THE CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS. Though the latter had hoped to bring in big summer crowds and was met with decent reviews, the $177 million budget was always going to be hard to make back. But clearly, this means just because something looks flashy doesn't mean people will pay to see it, and as GET OUT and SPLIT proved, maybe making a great movie for $5 million can yield better results than a bad one for $150 million.
GEOSTORM is in theaters now…but maybe not for long.