Older moviegoers, who made up the majority of ticket-buyers for Spielberg’s newest, have been sluggish to return to film theaters.
NEW YORK — Regardless of vital acclaim and two years-worth of anticipation, Steven Spielberg’s lavish “West Facet Story” revival made little noise on the field workplace, debuting with $10.5 million in ticket gross sales, in line with studio estimates Sunday — a worrisome consequence for a film business struggling to recapture its finger-snapping rhythm.
A blinding widescreen adaptation and Spielberg’s first musical, “West Facet Story” was one of many yr’s most eagerly awaited titles. With a script by Tony Kushner and Rita Moreno returning to her breakthrough movie 60 years later, the $100-million “West Facet Story” epitomizes a grand-scale status movie that Hollywood occasionally produces anymore. It hit theaters on a wave of glowing evaluations and expectations that it may play a starring function in March’s Academy Awards.
However “West Facet Story” confronted a difficult market for each adult-driven releases and musicals. Audiences have steadily returned to multiplexes within the second yr of the pandemic, however older moviegoers, who made up the majority of ticket-buyers for Spielberg’s newest, have been among the many slowest to return.
Musicals, too, have struggled to catch on in theaters. Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Within the Heights” launched with $11 million in June however the Warner Bros. launch concurrently streamed on HBO Max. The critically panned “Pricey Evan Hansen,” from Common, debuted with $7.4 million in September.
However this was Spielberg. If anybody may reignite moviegoing, the pondering went, it was him. Certainly, one of many films’ dazzling craftsmen, a director synonymous with field workplace, may spark a fuller revival in theaters. “West Facet Story,” too, is among the many most beloved musicals. The 1961 movie, directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Clever, made $43.7 million (or about $400 million adjusted for inflation) and gained 10 Oscars, together with finest image.
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“West Facet Story” can nonetheless be anticipated to play effectively by means of the profitable vacation hall, throughout which younger-skewing movies like “Spider-Man: No Method Dwelling” (anticipated to subsequent weekend change into the primary pandemic launch to open with $100 million or extra domestically) and “Sing 2” will probably be the highest attracts. Movie executives are hoping the spreading omicron variant of COVID-19 does not set the field workplace again simply as Hollywood is nearing its most worthwhile interval.
However the muted reception for “West Facet Story” will concern the business. Hopes had lengthy been pinned on Spielberg, along with his song-and-dance spectacular, to carry again a few of the films’ mojo. As a substitute, little proper now exterior of Marvel releases is discovering large audiences. Many moviegoers merely have not returned but.
“To attract moviegoers to grownup dramas in large numbers proper now looks as if a reasonably heavy carry,” stated Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for information agency Comscore. “That may wane over time, however it’s regarding for filmmakers and studios.”
“However I do not suppose that is the ultimate act for ‘West Facet Story,'” added Dergarabedian. “Lots of people counted out ‘The Biggest Showman.’”
That 2017 launch launched with a modest $8.8 million opening weekend earlier than having fun with a uncommon, prolonged run that made it, with $435 million worldwide, one of many highest grossing live-action musicals ever. In the course of the pandemic, although, films have pale rapidly on the multiplex, and infrequently been steered extra rapidly to streaming or house launch.
Starring newcomer Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort as Maria and Tony, “West Facet Story” took in $4.4 million in 37 abroad territories. As a result of the movie features a transgender character, it was banned in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait.
David A. Gross, who runs the film consultancy Franchise Leisure, known as the opening “comfortable.”
“If ‘West Facet Story’ goes to be worthwhile, it might want to join internationally as effectively domestically,” Gross stated in an e-mail. “To this point, the primary European openings have been good, however that is going to be a problem with moviegoing situations as troublesome as they’re.”
Spielberg’s movie was a very long time coming. Its launch was delayed a yr by the pandemic. It was developed at twentieth Century Fox, which was acquired by the Walt Disney Co. shortly earlier than manufacturing started. Days earlier than its Lincoln Middle premiere, the musical’s revered lyricist, Stephen Sondheim, died on the age of 91.
Second place for the weekend went to Disney’s animated “Encanto,” which held strongly in its third week, dropping solely 27% from the earlier weekend. It grossed $9.6 from Friday to Sunday, bringing its cumulative whole to $71.3 million domestically and $80.5 million internationally.
The weekend’s solely different new large launch — STX Movies’ faculty soccer drama “Nationwide Champions” — went largely unnoticed, pulling in $300,000 in 1,197 theaters.
Estimated ticket gross sales for Friday by means of Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, in line with Comscore. Closing home figures will likely be launched Monday.
1. “West Facet Story,” $10.5 million.
2. “Encanto,” $9.4 million.
3. “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” $7.1 million.
4. “Home of Gucci,” $4.1 million.
5. “Eternals,” $3.1 million.
6. “Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon Metropolis,” $1.7 million.
7. “Clifford the Massive Pink Canine,” $1.3 million.
8. “Christmas With the Chosen,” $1.3 million.
10. “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” $850,000.
