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At the box office, “Snake Eyes” rings true to its nickname.
The latest installment of “GI Joe,” an origin story starring Henry Golding of “Crazy Rich Asians” fame, fell short of expectations, raising $ 13.3 million in its first three days in North American cinemas. These ticket sales put “Snake Eyes” at number two on the national charts, behind M. Night Shyamalan’s mind-blowing thriller “Old” and its debut at $ 16.5 million. It’s an embarrassing start for “Snake Eyes,” which cost $ 88 million to produce, not to mention millions of dollars spent on global marketing. It also illustrates the limits of franchise cinema at a time when studios are always looking for the next big event.
Unfortunately for Paramount Pictures and director Robert Schwentke, unfavorable reviews haven’t helped raise the profile of a reboot to a long-lasting series that was already not particularly popular with audiences. “Snake Eyes” has a 42% on Rotten Tomatoes and a “B-” CinemaScore from the audience, suggesting the PG-13 movie may not bounce back in the coming weeks. Box office receipts weren’t cannibalized by “Space Jam: A New Age,” which opened last weekend and mostly drew family crowds, nor “Old,” which skewed women slightly ( 52% of ticket buyers) and people over 25 (62% of sales). For “Snake Eyes”, 60% of customers were men and 50% were under 25 years old.
While the movie industry has not fully regained its momentum during the pandemic, box office experts suggest that growing concern over the Delta variant of COVID-19 is also not entirely responsible for the lack of participation in “Snake Eyes”. One of the film’s biggest theatrical markets was Los Angeles, where infection rates rose and county officials reinstated mask warrants.
Box office analysts suggest that now, more than ever, the masses of moviegoers have been more selective about what they choose to leave home to see.
“Cinema and the general household economy are still in recovery mode,” said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at Box Office Pro. “Potential audiences are selective about what they spend their money on. “
Industry insiders estimate that “Snake Eyes” will need to generate around $ 160-175 million globally to break even and justify its $ 88 million budget. Arrived after several delays on the big screen due to COVID-19, the film may struggle to achieve that particular goal. “Snake Eyes” didn’t do much better at the international box office, where it grossed a paltry $ 4 million in 37 foreign markets. However, this only represents 29% of its international footprint. On the bright side, “Snake Eyes didn’t cost as much as its franchise predecessors. The first two entries had combined price tags of nearly $ 320 million.
The original property, which previously starred Ray Park, failed to achieve box office juggernaut status, even though it did make a profit. The “GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra” in 2009 and equally bad “GI Joe: Retaliation” in 2013 opened at $ 54 million and $ 40 million, respectively. Each has made $ 300 million worldwide – a good result, but not a great one given their large budgets. It is highly unlikely that “Snake Eyes” will come close to these ticket sales.
“When a character is derived from a thriller series like this, a big drop follows,” says David A. Gross, who heads film consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research.
That’s a problem because “Snake Eyes” was intended to revive the franchise, based on the popular Hasbro toy line, which hasn’t had a new entry for nearly a decade. Already, Paramount announced last March that a new “GI Joe” spin-off was in the works, as was a crossover adventure with the Transformers film series, its other toy-based property.
The performance of “Snake Eyes” highlights that in the golden age of intellectual property, not all figurines and board games are created equal. While several toy brands have made the jump to theaters successfully, like Transformers and Lego, others like Battleship have fallen flat. Hollywood has put a lot of emphasis on film adaptations of children’s toys and plastic games, with high-profile films based on Barbie (directed by Greta Gerwig), Barney (starring Oscar-nominated Daniel Kaluuya), Hot Wheels, Polly Pocket (with Lena Dunham attached) and Uno (with rapper Lil Yachty) all currently in development. Most of the talent attached is creative and pushing boundaries, but they must overcome skepticism that moviegoers urgently need to see a movie inspired by a doll or a simplistic card game.
In the case of “Snake Eyes,” analysts don’t think this is necessarily the end of “GI Joe’s” big-screen prospects. On the one hand, Golding has been praised for his turn as the mysterious lone fighter who will ultimately become the famous action hero. In his review forVariety, Chief film critic Owen Glieberman even claimed the film could double as Golding’s audition to play James Bond.
“Demand was just limited here, especially without a star or well-known ensemble to generate interest outside of the fan base,” Robbins said. “The franchise still has paths to success, it just takes a stronger roadmap in place if the studio is to build it into a cohesive, all-audience universe.”
Despite its track record of success, studios are unlikely to stop exploiting the toy industry for Hollywood glory. Prepare for the possibility of a Beanie Babies Cinematic Universe.
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