Jason Momoa stars as Arthur Curry, aka Aquaman, in Warner Bros.’ “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.”
Warner Bros. Discovery
“Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” dog-paddled to a $28.1 million domestic opening, the fourth-lowest within the history of the DC Prolonged Universe.
The film was expected to open between $32 million and $42 million. Because it stands, the $28 million estimate from Warner Bros. Discovery is lower than half of the $67.8 million the primary “Aquaman” movie brought in during its 2018 debut weekend.
The film, likely Jason Momoa’s last turn on the titular aquatic hero, is predicted to secure around $40 million in ticket sales over the four-day Christmas holiday weekend.
The weekend performance of “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” is on par with Warner Bros.’ DC franchise lately. Just one film from the franchise has debuted with greater than $60 million in ticket sales since 2018 — “Black Adam” took in $67 million in early 2022, based on data from Comscore.
DC Prolonged Universe film openings
- “Wonder Woman 1984” (2020) — $16.7 million
- “Blue Beetle” (2023) — $25 million
- “The Suicide Squad” (2021) — $26.2 million
- “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” (2023) — $28.1 million
- “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” (2023) — $30.1 million
- “Birds of Prey” (2020) — $33 million
- “Shazam!” (2019) — $53.5 million
- “The Flash” (2023) — $55 million
- “Black Adam” (2022) — $67 million
- “Aquaman” (2018) — $67.8 million
- “Justice League” (2017) — $93.8 million
- “Wonder Woman” (2017) — $103.2 million
- “Man of Steel” (2013) — $116.6 million
- “Suicide Squad” (2016) — $133.6 million
- “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” (2016) — $166 million
Source: Comscore
The $28 million estimated opening haul is smaller than the $30.1 million “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” tallied earlier this yr. Notably, the second “Shazam!” film only managed to gather $57.6 million domestically and $133 million globally during its run in theaters.
“Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” added $80.1 million from international ticket sales Friday through Sunday, bringing its total expected global take to $120 million (including the domestic Christmas expectations for Monday).
The primary “Aquaman” also benefited from international ticket sales back in 2018. Greater than 70% of its $1.15 billion box office got here from markets outside the U.S. and Canada, based on Comscore data.
Notably, “Aquaman” is the highest-grossing film within the DC Prolonged Universe franchise and no DCEU film has generated greater than $400 million at the worldwide box office since that film was released.
The franchise has suffered from lackluster quality, as critics have balked at CGI-heavy motion sequences and disjointed attempts at bringing heroes together for team-ups. Pandemic-era restrictions also led to smaller box office openings in 2020 and 2021.
Whilst those restrictions have lifted and audiences have returned to theaters, the DCEU has struggled to lure back even its most ardent fans. This was exacerbated earlier this yr when Warner Bros. Discovery announced that the complete franchise could be rebooted in 2025 by the newly minted heads of DC Studios, James Gunn and Peter Safran.
The planned reboot dismayed fans, who imagine that “Shazam! Fury of the Gods,” “Blue Beetle,” “The Flash” and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” — all released after the announcement — would don’t have any connection to future DC projects and weren’t must-see theatrical experiences.
One vivid spot for the “Aquaman” sequel is that it faces limited competition in theaters next week and may benefit from the upcoming holidays, as school vacations have parents searching for out-of-home entertainment.
“While so-called superhero fatigue could also be in play for a lot of movies of the genre in 2023, leading to lower-than-expected opening weekend results, movies that open in late December comparable to ‘Aquaman 2’ often play the long game and draw their audiences throughout the vacation and into the brand new yr,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore.