The Flash, a Warner Bros Discovery Inc. film based on the super-fast DC Comics hero, topped the box office this weekend with a lower-than-expected $55.1 million in domestic ticket sales.
(Bloomberg) — The Flash, a Warner Bros Discovery Inc. film based on the super-fast DC Comics hero, topped the box office this weekend with a lower-than-expected $55.1 million in domestic ticket sales.
Researcher Boxoffice Pro had estimated that the picture would generate about $69 million in its initial three days. The Flash faced challenges, including a star, Ezra Miller, accused of harassment and charged with burglary for stealing liquor from a neighbor. Miller pleaded guilty to trespassing in the latter case, according to Deadline.
The picture is a holdover from previous management of the DC franchise. Last year Warner Bros. named filmmakers James Gunn and Peter Safran as co-heads of the business and charged them with coming up with a new game plan for the company’s superheros.
Meanwhile, Elemental, a new animated movie from Walt Disney Co.’s Pixar division finished in second place with $29.5 million in box office revenue over three days, according to Comscore Inc. Boxoffice Pro had forecast about $33.3 million, while Disney was aiming for $35 million. That’s one of the worst openings ever for a Pixar film, and follows several misfires at the studio, which included disappointing results for last year’s Lightyear.
Including box-office receipts for the Juneteenth holiday on Monday, The Flash is expected to gross $64 million, with Elemental projected at $33.3 million.
That both titles lagged behind estimates on what was meant to be one of the biggest box office weekends of the summer speaks to ongoing issues for Hollywood and theaters. Chains such as AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. and Cineworld Group Plc’s Regal have struggled to draw movie-goers back to their cinemas at levels similar to before the pandemic.
While a few films, such as Sony Group’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and Universal Pictures’ The Super Mario Bros. Movie have done well, box office receipts remain below 2019 levels.
More potential blockbusters are on their way to theaters in coming weeks, including Disney’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Barbie from Warner Bros and Oppenheimer from Universal.
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