“Morbius,” the latest comic book adventure from Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters, opened at number one at the domestic box office, despite ticket sales being significantly weaker than recent superhero blockbusters.
Overwhelmed by hilariously horrific reviews, “Morbius” raked in $39.1 million in its first weekend of release in 4,268 North American theaters. That initial tally is both a sign that audiences genuinely love comic book movies (in pandemic times, a non-superhero movie wouldn’t have a chance at the box office with a 17% hit on Rotten Tomatoes) and an indication that not every superman becomes a character on the big screen equally welcomed. (Sony’s 2018 anti-hero origin story Venom was similarly planned but still made the domestic box office with $80 million at launch and $213 million overall).
“Morbius” grossed $44.9 million at the international box office, taking its total to $84 million. As with many Hollywood films, it’s unclear if Morbius will land a release date in China.
Sony spent $75 million to produce the vampire-infused “Morbius,” which is less than what studios typically spend on superhero blockbusters. Marketing and other advertising costs added many millions to spending. Since Morbius the living vampire isn’t nearly as well known as Spider-Man, Batman, or even Venom – who was introduced to mainstream audiences in Tobey Maguire’s “Spider-Man 3” and later played by Tom Hardy in the standalone films – film industry analysts had had didn’t expect “Morbius” to break box office records.
Still, Sony has a lot to do with Morbius, which stars Jared Leto as Michael Morbius, a renowned biochemist who becomes a deadly vampire after trying to cure himself of a rare blood disorder. The studio notably scored with Spider-Man: No Way Home ($1.88 billion at the global box office) and successfully turned Venom into cinematic gold (the first film grossed $856 million worldwide and the 2021 sequel Let There Be Carnage earned $501 million at the global box office). But Sony has bigger plans to create a viable rival for Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe, and a so-so turnout for Morbius signals that those films need to be actually watchable to keep audiences coming to theaters. Following Morbius, Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters chugs along with standalone stories through Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Kraven the Hunter and Dakota Johnson’s Madame Web.
Daniel Espinosa directed Morbius with a cast that includes Adria Arjona, Matt Smith, Jared Harris and Michael Keaton, reprising his role from previous Spider-Man films.
Given the muted response from critics and moviegoers (it landed a C+ CinemaScore), box office pundits don’t expect Morbius to have a fruitful life on the big screen. It will face stiff competition from younger male ticket buyers when Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (April 8) and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (April 15) hit theaters.
“This is a poor opening of Marvel’s exceptional standard for launching a new superhero series,” said David A. Gross, who runs film consultancy Franchise Entertainment Research. He added, “Marvel movies are generally very well reviewed; here the ratings are unusually bad.”
In a distant second place, Paramount’s action-adventure The Lost City raised a strong $14.8 million in its second weekend of release from 4,283 venues. To date, the screwball romantic comedy starring Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum has grossed $54.5 million at the domestic box office. Since the film cost $68 million, The Lost City isn’t a commercial winner just yet. However, it’s a promising sign that meeting cute faces hasn’t entirely fallen out of favor with moviegoers.
Another comic book, The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson, came in third with $10.8 million from 3,732 theaters. After five weeks on the big screen, the Warner Bros. film has grossed a whopping $349 million at the domestic box office. The Batman continues to be a force around the world, surpassing $700 million over the weekend. It is currently the highest-grossing film of the year at the national and global box office, grossing $710.5 million worldwide.
For the second straight weekend, Tom Holland’s video game adaptation Uncharted and Crunchyroll’s manga adaptation Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, on the box office charts.
Uncharted grossed $3.6 million from 3,064 theaters, taking its North American tally to $138.9 million. Overseas, the tentpole added $5.5 million from 55 markets with a budget of $120 million. This brings Uncharted’s total to $234 million internationally and $373 million worldwide.
An unexpected box office hit, the anime film Jujutsu Kaisen 0 earned $1.9 million from 2,070 screens in its third weekend in theaters. To date, the film has grossed $31 million.
In a limited run, Focus Features screened Goran Stolevski’s You Won’t Be Alone in 147 theaters, where the well-reviewed violent horror film grossed $125,000 – the equivalent of $850 per venue. After its debut, Focus has acquired Stolevski’s next film, Of An Age. Set in the summer of 1999, Of An Age follows a 17-year-old Serbian-born, Australian amateur ballroom dancer who experiences an unexpected and intense 24-hour romance with a friend’s older brother.
“We’re thrilled at how critics and audiences are responding to the brilliance of Goran’s artistry and storytelling,” said Lisa Bunnell, Sales Director, Focus Features. “His refreshingly unique voice is one that we hope will continue to entertain audiences.”
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