Muted 'Indiana Jones' Opening Deepens Summer Box Office Woes
The holiday weekend delivered even more bad news for the summer box office, as Indiana Jones joined The Flash on the list of time-traveling blockbusters currently struggling to find a strong audience.
Harrison Ford’s fifth (and reportedly final) turn in the fedora netted just $82 million during its first five days of release. Since the July 4 holiday fell on a Tuesday this year, studios are considering Friday through Tuesday for the weekend’s figures, as opposed to the traditional Friday through Sunday window.
At first sight, $82 million may seem like a significant opening gross for James Mangold’s legacy sequel to the 42-year-old franchise. But it's disappointing when you consider that the last Indiana Jones adventure, 2008’s Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, opened to $151.9 million (not adjusted for inflation), over a similar five-day period during Memorial Day.
“It’s impressive that a franchise that’s over 40 years old is No. 1 at the box office. But there’s no question there were higher hopes for the debut of this movie,” Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore, told Fortune. “This is Indiana Jones. This is a summer movie icon.”
Dial of Destiny, which cost a whopping $295 million before the ample marketing campaign, was designed to attract younger audiences to the enduring franchise. However, 42 percent of tickets were sold to cinema-goers aged 45 and up. Though the July Fourth holiday is not typically the biggest frame for multiplex attendance—with many favoring outdoor activities instead—the lukewarm buzz out of Cannes and an unenthusiastic B+ CinemaScore likely deterred audiences further.
Industry analysts are predicting a sophomore total of $24 million for Dial of Destiny. It could still lose the number one spot to Insidious: The Red Door, the fifth entry in the horror franchise, which is currently tracking for a $23 million debut.
Pixar’s Elemental placed second for the weekend, grossing $17.9 million. In third place with $17.8 million was Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which has topped $600 million worldwide. No Hard Feelings, grossing $11.1 million with a respectable 50 percent hold over its opening weekend, and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts ($10.7 million) rounded out the box office top five. The Flash, at number seven, just barely crossed the $100 million mark domestically.
Through July 2, the 2023 summer box office has amassed $1.88 billion, down 1.7 percent from 2022. Last summer benefited from the juggernaut that was Top Gun: Maverick, which grossed $555 million and stayed in theaters well into the fall and winter.
The industry is hoping Tom Cruise can provide another much-needed jump start to the summer box office on July 12, when the star’s Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Part 1 hits theaters. Industry wisdom sees that film opening at $90 million over five days, a best for the M:I franchise.