Lucy Liu in a scene from Red One.Frank Masi/The Associated Press
Moviegoers were not exactly feeling the Christmas spirit this weekend, or at least not based on their attendance at Red One showings.
The big budget, star-driven action comedy with Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans sold US$34.1-million in tickets in its first weekend in theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday. It easily topped a box office populated mostly by holdovers.
For traditional studios, a US$34.1-million debut against a US$200-million-plus production budget would be a clear indication of a flop. Some even peg the budget closer to US$250-million. But Red One is an Amazon MGM Studios release with the luxury of playing the long game rather than relying solely on global box office where Johnson tentpoles often overperform. The film may have a life on Prime Video for years to come.
Red One, in which Johnson plays Santa’s bodyguard, was originally built to go straight-to-streaming. It was greenlit prior to Amazon’s acquisition of MGM. One interpretation of its lifecycle is that the theatrical earnings are not only just a bonus, but an additive gesture toward struggling theaters looking for a consistent stream of new films.
“Amazon has 250 million plus worldwide subscribers to the platform. It’s similar to the way Netflix, I think, looks at stuff for their platform,” said Kevin Wilson, head of distribution for Amazon MGM Studios. “There’s a there’s a massive value for a movie like this in terms of how many eyeballs you’re going to get.”
The first major studio holiday release since 2018, Red One opened on 4,032 screens, including IMAX and other large formats, on an otherwise quiet weekend for major releases.
“We’re really happy with the results,” Wilson said. “I think when you look at the theatrical marketplace that’s sometimes unforgiving, especially for original films, this is a good result for us.”
Since 2020, only seven films that weren’t sequels or based on another piece of intellectual property have opened over US$30-million (including Oppenheimer and Nope).
Warner Bros. is handling the overseas release, where it has made an estimated US$50-million in two weekends from 75 territories and 14,783 screens.
Still, it’s certainly not a theatrical hit in North America. Even Joker: Folie à Deux made slightly more in its first weekend. Red One, directed by Jake Kasdan and produced by Johnson’s Seven Bucks, was roundly rejected by critics, with a dismal 33 per cent Rotten Tomatoes score. Jake Coyle, in his review for the Associated Press, wrote that it “feels like an unwanted high-priced Christmas present.”
Audiences were kinder than they were to Joker 2, giving it an A- CinemaScore, suggesting, perhaps, that the idea of it becoming a perennial holiday favorite is not so off-base.
Red One is also overperforming in the middle of the country, Wilson said, and perhaps will have a nice holdover over Thanksgiving as a different option to the behemoths on the way.
Sony’s Venom: The Last Dance added US$7.4-million this weekend’s box office to take second place, bringing its domestic total to US$127.6-million. Globally, its total stands at US$436.1-million.
Lionsgate’s The Best Christmas Pageant Ever landed in third with US$5.4-million. That much more modestly budgeted Christmas movie has already nearly doubled its US$10-million production budget in two weeks. Fourth place went to A24’s Hugh Grant horror Heretic, with US$5.2-million, bumping its total gross to $20.4 million.
Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s The Wild Robot rounded out the top five in its eighth weekend in theaters with an additional US$4.3-million. The animated film surpassed US$300-million worldwide.
This weekend is a bit of a stopover before the Thanksgiving tentpoles arrive. Next week, Wicked and Gladiator II face off in theaters with Moana 2, which also stars Johnson, sailing in the Wednesday before the holiday.
Gladiator II also got a bit of a head start internationally, where it opened in 63 markets this weekend to gross US$87-million. That’s a record for filmmaker Ridley Scott and for an R-rated international release from Paramount. It opens in the U.S. and Canada on Nov. 22.
Final domestic figures will be released Monday. Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “Red One,” $34.1 million.
2. “Venom: The Last Dance,” $7.4 million.
3. “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” $5.4 million.
4. “Heretic,” $5.2 million.
5. “The Wild Robot,” $4.3 million.
6. “Smile 2,” $3 million.
7. “Conclave,” $2.9 million.
8. “Hello, Love, Again,” $2.3 million.
9. “A Real Pain,” $2.3 million.
10. “Anora,” $1.8 million.