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Superman Returns-Box Office

OK, I plan to write on Superman Returns at least two more times. I will talk this time about its box office take, and probably one more time about my impression of the IMAX version.

The Superman Returns box office has been a tricky subject this past week. Some (notably any affiliate of Fox, the arch rival of Warner Brothers when it comes to this kind of thing) want to call it a raging disappointment and an abysmal failure, only because it did not live up to its peak expectations that it would crush every box office record known to man and make back its budget within its first seven days. Superman Returns obviously did not do that. It claimed no box office records, and failed to make more in its first week than last years 4th of July fare, War of the Worlds. And its almost certain to take a steep box office nosedive when Pirates of the Caribbean 2 opens this weekend.

But there is a positive spin on the situation that others who dont work for Fox have been willing to admit. The fact is, Superman Returns made $108 million in its first seven days, which is over half its production budget of $204 million ($40-$60 million more than that was spent on development before the movie ever went into production). This is a solid number, especially considering its the only non-sequel to a new franchise that has ever made that much money in one week besides Spiderman, the Passion of the Christ, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, and War of the Worlds.

Now Spiderman was the first HUGE hit of the superhero genre and no other film of its kind has been able to beat it but Spiderman 2.

The Passion of the Christ, is well, about the most popular figure in human history so good luck beating that one.

Harry Potter was a gigantic literary phenomenon leading right up to its release as a film.

War of the Worlds, well, I dont honestly understand why that one was such a hit. I guess the public's hatred of Tom Cruise hadnt settled in just yet.

So other than those four films, Superman Returns is the only non-sequel to be so successful. Every other film with a better opening week was building off recent audience familiarity (examples would be Return of the King, Revenge of the Sith, the Matrix Reloaded, Spiderman 2, and X-Men the Last Stand.) Now some might say Superman Returns is technically a sequel, and I grant that. But its not a sequel in a recent franchise. Its a sequel to 27 year old film, so I really dont think that counts in the same way.

I was honestly kind of upset when Superman Returns didnt do as well as the most optimistic analysts thought it would do. It is after all Superman, who is supposed to be our most recognizable and beloved cultural icon. He has obviously suffered a loss in his popularity over the years, and thats reflected in the fact that more Americans will watch the movie version of a Disney theme park ride this summer than this amazing character with a 70 year cultural history.

Its also annoying that Superman Returns might ultimately make less than Fox's X3: A Last Stand, a terrible movie which is a testament to Fox studio's willingness to do a last minute hackjob if it thinks it can make a profit. And it did. Superman is a superior movie in every way and yet it might make less money. That does kind of get my goad.

Nevertheless, the franchise is off to a STRONG start and we have every reason to believe that a sequel will be made. I think Superman is well on his way to becoming cool again, which would be a good thing for a fanboy like me.

Do check out this link for a pretty well-reasoned article about the SR box office take. I think the article does a good job of pointing out the positive while being honest about the negatives. Anyway, for those of you who havent already tuned out to my blatant geekiness, check it out!

Posted by todd at July 6, 2006 7:49 PM