2018 Box Office On Track To Set New Record
Despite the persistent fear that streaming will kill off movie theaters, the 2018 box office is on track to break records, domestically. The domestic box office revenue for the year just hit $11 billion, and will only continue to increase in the remaining days of 2018. This puts 2018 on the path to obliterate the previous record-holding year of 2016, where the annual box office topped-out at $11.4 billion. In short, it was a very good year for the movies. But some films weren’t so lucky…
Domestic Box Office
THRis reporting that 2018’s box office is running 10% ahead of 2017 – which closed out at $11.1 billion. Per THR, “Domestic revenue hit the $11 billion mark at a record pace this year. It took until Dec. 26 in 2016, Dec. 29 in 2015 and Dec. 30 last year.” WhileStar Warsfilms have usually been the hot ticket for the holidays for the last few years, this December isStar Wars-free. But there are still plenty of big movies remaining:Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verseswings into theaters this week, whileMary Poppins Returns,AquamanandBumblebeeall arrive next week.
As you might expect, Disney had the best year – because they own everything.Black Pantherwas the top domestic earner in 2018, grossing $700 million.Avengers: Infinity War($678.8 million) andIncredibles 2($608.6 million) sit at number 2 and 3.Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdomroars in at number 4 with $416.8 million, andDeadpool 2sits at $318.5 million.
Other Box Office Hits
In addition to the films mentioned above, other big hits for 2018 include (viaVariety):
Box Office Flops
And then we have the disappointments. The films that couldn’t break-even, and possibly should have never been greenlit in the first place. TheRobin Hoodreboot cost $100 million to make, but could only rob $65 million from audiences globally.The Nutcracker and the Four Realmsearned $138 million globally on a $100 million budget. The YA adaptationA Wrinkle In Timeraked in $132 million globally, but also cost $100 million. Dirty puppet movieThe Happytime MurdersandDragon Tattoosequel/rebootThe Girl In the Spider’s Web–two movies I bet you forgot even came out this year – also flopped.Happytimeended up with $27 million on a $40 million budget, andSpider’s Webcaught $31 million while costing $43 million to make.
The most disappointing entry, though, isThe Sisters Brothers. This strange, anti-Western was one of my favorite films of the year – a melancholy fable featuring John C. Reilly, Joaquin Phoenix, Jake Gyllenhaal and Riz Ahmed. Despite that impressive cast, no one bothered to see the flick – it took in a depressing global total of $9 million on a $38 million budget. Part of the blame lies in marketing – the film was too weird to sell.
