DC’s highly anticipated superhero pic the flash and Pixar Elementary have their work cut out for them before opening in North American theaters on June 16, according to early tracking.
the flash, starring Ezra Miller in the lead role, is expected to open in the $70 million range, according to sources who have access to tracking data. Box office insiders say that’s a sweet number for a film that has been heavily promoted by Warner Brothers Discovery as the best superhero movie of all time. Others note that a movie’s take once it opens is more important than the opening weekend gross.
End of April, the flash was CinemaCon’s toast. “It’s the best superhero movie I’ve ever seen,” WBD CEO David Zaslav told theater owners before they saw the movie in its entirety.
The photo opens after a tumultuous 2022 for Miller, who has been arrested multiple times and been the subject of controversy, culminating in the actor issuing a statement in August last year apologizing for his behavior and saying he would receive help for “complex mental health issues.”
Miller stars in dual roles as alternate timeline versions of heroic speedster Barry Allen, with Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck making stellar returns from their respective Batman roles (in Keaton’s case, it’s a one-character return). which he has not played since 1991). Sasha Calle stars as Supergirl, while Michael Shannon reprises his role as General Zod from the 2013 feature film Steel man.
After the tepid projection of Shazam! Fury of the gods And black adam, Warner’s DC movies could use box office success. At the same time, the flash is one of the last films left by the previous regime. The studio is now run by James Gunn and Peter Safran, who intend to relaunch the label with Gunn’s Superman: Legacy.
There are three weeks left at Warner Bros. to make its latest marketing campaign for the flashwhich means there are plenty of benefits in terms of generating interest and awareness, according to insiders.
Ditto for Pixar and Disney. Elementary is heading for even lower numbers at $40 million domestically, sources say.
The studio only seriously launched the film’s marketing campaign in recent days, including an integration with american idol. Elementary makes its world premiere this weekend at the Cannes Film Festival.
If the follow-up remains as it is, Elementary will join The good dinosaur And Ahead by being one of the few Pixar films to open under $50 million (the two subsequent films both opened to $39 million domestically). And there were a lot of negative headlines when Ratatouille opened to $47 million before turning into a box office sensation.
Pixar, like DC, could use a box office win. During the pandemic, some Pixar movies were sent straight to Disney+, so the legendary animation only released one title in theaters – Light year – Since Aheadexcluding reissues. Ahead opened March 6, 2020, days before the COVID-19 crisis led to unprecedented theater closures. Light year was a disappointment, reaching $226.4 million worldwide in the summer of 2022.
Disney premiered 20 minutes of Elementary at CinemaCon. Directed by Peter Sohn (The Good Dinosaur), the film takes place in Element City, where the inhabitants of fire, water, earth and air live together. Her themes include connection, celebrating differences and finding your place in the world.
The story follows Ember (Leah Lewis), a tough, quick-witted and feisty young woman whose friendship with a sappy, dynamic guy named Wade (Mamoudou Athiec) challenges her beliefs about the world they live in, where “elements do not mix.”
May 25, 5:20 p.m.: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said that Pixar hadn’t released a movie theatrically since Ahead.