‘Big Bold Beautiful Journey’ Bombs, Him Opens to $15 Million

“Him,” a sports thriller about a football player training to be the greatest of all time, won’t be the box office G.O.A.T. after all.

The film opened slightly behind expectations with $13.5 million from 3,168 North American venues. Earlier in the weekend, “Him” seemed on track to debut to $15 million. Either way, those ticket sales weren’t enough to enough to dethrone last weekend’s champ “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle.” After a close race for No. 1, the anime smash from Sony-owned Crunchyroll easily ruled again at the domestic box office with $17.3 million in its second frame. “Him” followed behind in the No. 2 spot.

Meanwhile this weekend’s other new release, “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey,” cratered in sixth place with $3.5 million from 3,330 venues. The star power of Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell couldn’t overcompensate for terrible reviews (a 38% Rotten Tomatoes average) and bad buzz (a “B-” grade on CinemaScore exit polls), meaning “a big bold beautiful journey” likely won’t describe the film’s box office run.

“Him” also opened at the international box office, where it bombed with $400,000 from 25 markets. That brings the film’s global tally to $13.86 million. “Him” cost $27 million and won’t require a ton to turn a theatrical profit. That’s the good news. The bad is that critics and audiences rejected the film (it was saddled with a 28% Rotten Tomatoes average and “C-” grade on CinemaScore), which will hurt word-of-mouth during its big screen run. Produced by Jordan Peele and directed by Justin Tipping, the psychological thriller follows an aging quarterback (Marlon Wayans) who trains a rising football star (Tyriq Withers) to some chilling consequences.

“Producer Jordan Peele, whose name is featured throughout the campaign, is primarily responsible for the success, but the movie is not being received well,” says analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research. “A CinemaScore of ‘C’ or ‘C+’ is common for a horror film; a ‘C-‘ indicates some dissatisfaction.”

“A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” opened behind already soft expectations of $8 million to $10 million. The movie also stumbled internationally with $4.5 million from 45 markets for a bleak $8 million worldwide total. “After Yang” filmmaker Kogonada directed from a script by “The Menu” screenwriter Seth Reiss. The R-rated film, which follows to single strangers who meet at a wedding and get to relive important moments from their respective pasts, carries a $45 million price tag.

“That’s a big number to recoup,” says Gross, considering that “reviews are not good and the audience score is lukewarm.”

So far, “Demon Slayer” has generated $103 million domestically to stand as the biggest anime film in North American box office history. Although ticket sales collapsed by roughly 75% from its record-breaking $70 million debut, this weekend’s $17.3 million tally is notable because those returns would have been impressive in its initial frame. The film, which is being released elsewhere by Aniplex and Toho, has also officially become the highest grossing anime film in the rest of the world with $451 million internationally and $555 million worldwide. “Infinity Castle” is the first in a trilogy about a boy who becomes a demon slayer to avenge his family and find a cure for his sister who was turned into a demon. Hype for the initial cinematic adventure certainly bodes well for the two follow-up films.

Elsewhere, holdover titles rounded out the top five on box office charts. Third place went to “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” which added a sizable $13 million from 3,413 locations in its third weekend of release. So far the paranormal thriller has become the highest-grossing in the franchise with $151.2 million domestically and $400 million globally. The fourth “Conjuring” continues a stellar run for Warner Bros.-owned New Line Cinema, which has crossed the $1 billion mark this year thanks to horror hits like “Final Destination: Bloodlines” and “Weapons.”

Lionsgate’s Stephen King adaptation “The Long Walk” and “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale” tied for fourth place with each film estimating $6.3 million over the weekend. The final order will be confirmed on Monday.

“The Long Walk” declined 46% from its debut, marking a decent hold for the modestly priced film. “The Long Walk,” a thriller about teens who participate in a brutal contest where they must continuously walk or die, has generated $22.7 million domestically against a $20 million production budget.

“Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale,” by comparison, declined by 66% from its first weekend. The film, backed by Focus Features and designed to bid farewell to the franchise that started with television and spawned several theatrical adventures, has grossed $31.6 million in North America and $59.5 million worldwide. The first “Downton Abbey” movie was hugely successful with $96 million domestically and $194 million worldwide. That film was released in 2019, a completely different era at the box office. The 2022 sequel, “A New Era,” debuted after COVID upended the theatrical landscape and ultimately earned $44 million in North America and $92.6 million globally.

Also new to theaters, the Angel Studios sports drama “The Senior” opened at No. 7 with a soft $2.7 million from 2,405 theaters. The inspirational true story follows a 59-year-old who becomes a college football linebacker. Audiences embraced the PG-rated film with an “A” grade on CinemScore exit polls.

Overall box office returns are 4.4% ahead of 2024 while still more than 22% behind 2019, according to Comscore. The next two weekends should provide a boost as Paul Thomas Anderson’s action epic “One Battle After Another,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and Taylor Swift’s newly announced “The Official Release Party of a Showgirl,” land on the big screen.

More to come…