The fact that original IP is struggling at the box office is not something new–in fact, it’s been happening for quite some time coming out of the pandemic.

The latest to report on the box office struggles is Ben Fritz of The Wall Street Journal. Fritz previously authored The Big Picture. The fact that the book came out a few years before the pandemic almost makes it feel like a time capsule. It wasn’t until 2019 when we started to see a dearth of streaming services really begin to change the landscape. And then Covid-19 hit, putting a pause on the box office and training families to watch movies at home. But even as I’ve noted on these pages, aside from the major blockbusters, original IP has struggled. Some original ideas can succeed on the basis of their cast; others, not so much.

Two films that should have done well at the box office were West Side Story and Nightmare Alley. Both films would be nominated for Best Picture while Spielberg earned another nomination for Best Director. While Spider-Man: No Way Home seemed to have found an audience amid the Omicron surge, the two Best Picture nominees really struggled.

Anyway, Fritz quotes Drop filmmaker Christopher Landon’s comments at the film’s TCL Chinese Theatre premiere.

“It’s really hard out there for an original movie,” he said, urging everyone who liked the Universal Pictures release to “scream it from the rooftops” and on social media.

Drop made it into the top five at the domestic box office. Unfortunately, it didn’t even break $8 million. At the same time, Oscar-winning actor Rami Malek starred in The Amateur, which also opened on Friday. The film, based on a 1981 novel, earned just over $14 million at the box office. International numbers have helped The Amateur while Drop is just struggling overall. Did the distance between the novel’s publication and remake–there was a Canadian film released in 1981–make a difference in attracting an audience? Maybe.

Fritz notes how studios placed their “bets on original ideas” after both moviegoers and Hollywood insiders griped about “the seemingly nonstop barrage of sequels, spin-offs, and adaptations of comic books and toys.” However, it should be noted that Barbie was one of the rare exceptions that outperformed beyond anyone’s expectations at the box office.

Despite the want for original content, audiences are just not showing up in return. Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis performed so poorly that the studio didn’t even bother sending awards screeners for Critics Choice Awards consideration. It’s not available to buy, rent, or stream digitally and the only way to watch on physical media is to import the film from another region. In many markets, press had to choose between The Wild Robot or Megalopolis. I went with The Wild Robot as that invite was sent first.

Aside from Megalopolis, other films that performed poorly included Mickey 17 (Warner Bros.), The Alto Knights (Warner Bros.), Novocaine, Fly Me to the Moon (Apple TV), Red One (Amazon), and Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1 (Warner Bros. release, independently financed). Many of these films had a star-studded cast but it still wasn’t enough to get butts in seats. The Greg Berlanti-directed Fly Me to the Moon didn’t even earn half of its budget at the box office. The Alto Knights isn’t faring much better. Despite Barry Levinson directed Robert De Niro, the film was essentially yanked after two weeks of release, earning just over $6 million domestically against a $45-50 million budget.

Drop has performed better with critics, attracting over 80% positive reviews. It also premiered to SXSW and has had about a month to capitalize on the post-SXSW premiere hype. The good news for Universal Pictures is that the film was produced on an $11 million budget. With the right word of mouth, it should be a modest box office success. It just won’t be a runaway hit in today’s market.

Up until a few years ago, studios could reliably depend on spreading awareness through Twitter. These days, not so much. Audiences are so fractured to where it’s become really tough to spread awareness through social media. Hollywood isn’t utilizing Bluesky as a resource in opening films as it has done with Twitter.

Passover prevented many Jewish-Americans from going to the movies these weekend. However, Jews account for 2% of the American population so the overall numbers wouldn’t have had much of an impact. If anything has had an impact on original ideas struggling, it’s the rising ticket prices at a time when Americans are dealing with economic uncertainty. Many economists are predicting a recession–entertainment is a form of escapism but it’s not as important as buying food or medicine.

Unfortunately, I can’t place the blame on Passover for a wider problem, which has been proven throughout much of 2024 and into 2025. I don’t think it’s as much an issue of what’s coming out in theaters in as much as how much it’s now costing to go see movies at the theaters. If there’s anyone who gets this, it’s Sony Motion Pictures Group chairman Tom Rothman! He noted how Tuesday was one of the biggest days of the week because of theaters offering discounts. And again, inflation combined with economic uncertainty are not going to help bring favorable results at the box office.

Speaking of uncertainty, I’m gonna be frank. Right now, we’re living in an era where people are turning to older films and TV for comfort viewing. I’m guilty of it myself. Even as I do this for a living, there are days where my headspace and focus are so bad that I have no choice but to rewatch Airplane! for the upteenth time or turn to films like Indiana Jones, Back to the Future, Star Wars, The Blues Brothers, etc. for mental health purposes. Hell, some days, I might just feel like turning on a concert film. Or the ever-dependable Dr. Strangelove. It just really depends on the day.

Hollywood can take as many risks as it wants but it’s up to the audience to show up and help the box office.

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