Megalopolis’ flops at the box office as ‘The Wild Robot’ takes top spot
Megalopolis Flops at Box Office as The Wild Robot Dominates Weekend Sales
Francis Ford Coppola’s long-awaited film Megalopolis flopped this weekend as it struggled to captivate audiences, earning only $4 million in ticket sales. Released on September 29, 2024, the film was overshadowed by DreamWorks Animation’s The Wild Robot, which soared to the top of the box office with a strong $35 million debut in U.S. and Canadian theaters. The Wild Robot, directed by Chris Sanders, is an adaptation of Peter Brown’s bestselling novel. The movie’s success was expected after receiving glowing reviews from critics, who praised its heartfelt story about a shipwrecked robot raising an orphaned gosling. The audience’s enthusiasm was evident, with The Wild Robot earning an A CinemaScore.
The Wild Robot is poised for a lengthy and successful run, with industry analysts predicting strong ticket sales in the weeks to come. Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst for Comscore, commented that The Wild Robot could follow the same path as Pixar’s Elemental, which debuted with modest box office earnings but ultimately grossed nearly $500 million worldwide. Family-oriented films, including Inside Out 2, have been some of the biggest box-office hits this year. Experts predict the genre will generate $6 billion globally by the end of 2024, matching pre-pandemic levels.
Meanwhile, Megalopolis, Coppola’s modern-day Roman epic set in New York City, was an ambitious passion project decades in the making. Coppola self-financed the movie with $120 million of his own money and poured his heart into the project. The movie had a lot riding on it, especially as Coppola had not released a film in 13 years. Despite its grand scope, Megalopolis fell short of expectations. Critics were divided on the film after its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, and audiences seemed unimpressed, giving it a D+ CinemaScore.
In stark contrast to the success of The Wild Robot, Megalopolis’ financial performance was disappointing. Even with a star-studded cast that included Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Aubrey Plaza, the film could not attract a sizable audience. Coppola, however, remained unfazed by the film’s commercial struggles, stating that he was never concerned about its box-office performance. “Everyone’s so worried about money,” Coppola said in a pre-release interview with the Associated Press. “I say: Give me less money and give me more friends.”
Despite his optimism, Megalopolis failed to break through. The film was released in around 200 IMAX theaters, accounting for $1.8 million of its total earnings, but this could not save the project from being labeled a flop. Initially, no major studio wanted to take on the distribution of Megalopolis, but Lionsgate eventually stepped in for a fee. Coppola also covered $15 million in marketing costs, further intensifying the financial risks.
Elsewhere in the box office, Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, a sequel to his 1988 cult classic Beetlejuice, held the second spot with $16 million in its fourth week. The film, starring Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder, has already grossed $250 million domestically and continues to perform well. In third place was Transformers One, a prequel in the Transformers franchise, which earned $9.3 million during its second weekend in theaters. Starring Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry, the film saw a modest improvement from its debut.
Another surprise came from the Indian Telugu-language action film Devara: Part 1, which debuted in fourth place with $5.1 million. The film outperformed Megalopolis, adding to the challenges Coppola’s film faced in securing a solid audience.
In limited release, Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, a dramatization of the launch of Saturday Night Live in 1975, premiered in just five theaters in New York and Los Angeles. Despite its small release, the film earned an impressive $265,000, averaging $53,000 per theater. Reitman’s film will expand nationwide in two weeks, potentially posing competition for other releases.
The weekend’s top 10 films rounded out with Speak No Evil in fifth place with $4.3 million, followed by Deadpool & Wolverine at $2.7 million, My Old Ass and Never Let Go, both earning $2.2 million, and finally The Substance, which brought in $1.8 million.
As Megalopolis faces an uncertain future at the box office, the success of The Wild Robot and other family-friendly films continues to highlight the stark contrast in audience preferences. Coppola’s personal passion project may not have resonated with mainstream audiences, but The Wild Robot‘s heartwarming tale proves that emotional storytelling still has the power to dominate the box office.
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