By all accounts and by all sources, a disastrous result for a $200M Marvel Studios movie. But, wait, didn’t you declare Apple Original Studios’ and Paramount’s $200M Killers of the Flower Moon at $44M a success a few weeks ago? Just sit down, I’ll explain in a bit.
And as far as the whole Killers of the Flower Moon getting a pass at the box office B.S.: Wake up to the fact that Apple and Disney’s goals couldn’t be more separate. One is a tech business with a streaming service, and the other is a content-driven conglom that extends into travel lifestyle and merchandising; two very different businesses. Film finance sources tell me that a $200M production cost on Killers of the Flower Moon is literally an advertising expense for Apple and its P&L is different from the way that The Marvels would be assessed. At the end of the day, it’s not Apple’s goal at the end of the day to make money in the theatrical business. Disney’s goals and plans are similar to Max, Paramount+, Peacock, etc.and they’re beating the aforementioned. However, all streaming services associated with the majors are still losing money. For Apple, theatrical is a bonus on Killers of the Flower Moon, and they didn’t make the movie for theatrical, rather locking people into their ecosystem. This compared to the fact that Disney institutional shareholders demand short-term profitably from their OTT service and content.
A more severe question to ask? Could Disney have opened a 3 1/2 hour older adult movie to $23M at the domestic box office during an actors strike? Could Disney have opened 3-hour Oppenheimer about a WWII physicist to $82.4M right before an actors strike?
Movies like that are out of the Mousehouse’s wheelhouse.
