Chương 518: Foreboding
Was it unexpected or inevitable?
For commercial films, facing collective criticism from the media was seemingly a normal outcome. However, the pre-release internal feedback on "Thor" told a different story. Paramount and related individuals had repeatedly emphasized that this was an eagerly anticipated work, with a quality that could rival "Iron Man". So, what had happened now?
Objectively speaking, losing to "Fast 5" in media reviews was not a good sign. It was frustrating and even infuriating to lose to a B-level film series like this. However, it still wasn't the end of the world; ultimately, the battle for commercial films revolved around box office performance.
As for media reviews? Well, "Fast 5" wasn't going to win any Oscars, so what good were higher media review scores? The ultimate criterion for victory or defeat between the two films would still be box office earnings. So, it wasn't a time for panic just yet.
But Paramount Pictures was panicking, Chris Hemsworth was panicking, Morgan Fisher was panicking, and Natalie Portman's mood was far from upbeat. Because after officially debuting in the North American market on Friday, other aspects of the film's reputation continued to crumble, with no signs of improvement.
Rotten Tomatoes' freshness rating was only 75%, and the average rating from mainstream media outlets was just 6.4 out of 10. The popcorn index started at 74% and showed a declining trend. If this wasn't terrifying enough, if it didn't warrant panic, then the theater score of "B+" was akin to pronouncing the movie's death sentence.
Even "Fast & Furious 4" had an "A-" rating, not to mention "Fast 5", which had secured an "A." Now, "Thor" had only managed to earn a "B+" rating. This meant that if the opening weekend box office didn't exceed $100M, the movie might struggle to cross the $200M threshold. Although it was only a "possibility" at this point, it was becoming increasingly likely.
No one would forget that before the film's release, "Thor" was expected to follow in the footsteps of "Iron Man" and gross $300M in North America. But now, the situation had reversed. "Thor" and its $200M aspiration was fading, while "Fast 5" was on the rise with renewed hopes of reaching $300M.
Defeat, total defeat, from media reviews to Rotten Tomatoes ratings, from theater scores to popcorn index, "Thor" was falling behind "Fast 5" across the board.
In just two weeks, the world seemed to have turned upside down. "Fast 5", which had never been highly regarded in terms of reputation, had become both critics' and audiences' darling. On the other hand, "Thor", with all its pomp and circumstance, was now under relentless scrutiny. The positions of the two films had completely reversed. Reputation, momentum, and even popularity seemed to have shifted as well.
This was the summer blockbuster season, but it was no longer the one people were familiar with. Yet, it was still Hollywood.
But was this the end of the world? No, it was not.
In 2009, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was released amid much anticipation. It received a media rating of 35, a Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating of 19%, a mainstream media rating of 3.9 out of 10, a popcorn index of 57%, and a theater score of "B+." A series of such dismal ratings was nothing short of a catastrophe, almost unbearable to witness. But what was the outcome?
Finally, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" swept North America, earning $400M and reaching a global box office of $836M. It secured second place on the year-end box office chart, just behind the incredible "Avatar." It shattered all laws, broke all norms, and defied all rules. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" had carved out its unique path.
Now, all the review data for "Thor" was ahead of "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen". This meant that everything was far from over. On the contrary, everything had just begun, and doomsday was still far off.
But no one liked such a beginning, especially with all the hype surrounding the opening battle. Paramount didn't just expect a victory; they wanted a resounding, exhilarating triumph. Yet, facing the strong performance of "Fast 5", "Thor" had encountered a pre-release Waterloo.
Their debut was unfortunate and was gradually evolving into a catastrophe.
It was like the once-majestic Titanic, setting sail with a lot of fanfare, accelerating continually, trying to break speed records for long-distance voyages. But due to excessive acceleration, an iceberg suddenly appeared within sight, a colossal iceberg capable of destroying everything, blocking their path, and casting a shadow over their future.
The Titanic of the past couldn't avoid it. Would "Thor" fare differently this time?
On May 6th, a Friday, carrying the negative reputation, bearing the intense scrutiny of the opening battle, and bearing the eager expectations of the entire summer blockbuster season, "Thor" officially premiered. It played across 3,955 theaters, marking the start of the summer blockbuster season, the era of comic book superhero movies, and the opening battle showdown. Success or failure, victory or defeat, would be revealed during this weekend.
$23M.
When the box office numbers for Friday were revealed, everyone was shocked, even questioning if there was a mistake in the calculations. The sky-high expectations had plummeted like a free fall into an abyss. It wasn't just fragmented and shattered; it had been reduced to powder, and even the smallest remnants couldn't be found.
After more than six months of extensive promotion, over a year of careful preparation and refinement, and a promotional budget of over $45M, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that "Thor" had made a dazzling entrance under the watchful eyes of the public. Regardless of media reviews or audience reception, at the very least, in terms of attention and anticipation, this film was undeniably one of the top works of the summer, rivaling "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2".
In theory, the box office for the opening weekend should have been packed with explosive energy. The subsequent box office trends were where the influence of word-of-mouth and quality came into play. However, right now, not to mention Saturday and Sunday, even the Friday box office was astonishingly weak, leaving everyone dumbfounded.
What had happened?
This was the question on everyone's mind. Was it because the appeal of comic book superhero films wasn't as high as imagined? Was "Iron Man" just a one-off phenomenon? Was it because the negative word-of-mouth after the premiere had seriously dampened audience expectations? Or was it because of... Chris Hemsworth's "scriptgate"?
The specific reasons were elusive, but the poor performance at the Friday box office was glaringly evident.
May, being the first month of the summer blockbuster season, was historically a dense battleground for box office supremacy, rivaling even July in terms of fierce competition. Just in this month alone, there were eight films that had broken the hundred-million-dollar mark during their opening weekends, claiming half of the records on the all-time box office chart. Moreover, there were at least ten films with daily box office earnings surpassing forty million, not to mention those with earnings in the thirty million range...
Even though "Fast 5" had set a record for its opening weekend, it was humbly modest when placed in the context of May.
But what about "Thor"? The film that couldn't even compete with "Fast 5"?
Its opening day box office was $23M, compared to the $37M of "Fast 5", a whole "Troy" of difference.
Such abysmal box office numbers had truly pushed "Thor" to the executioner's block. Although there were still cases of Saturday box office surpassing Friday box office, miraculous second-week drops similar to "Avatar" were still possible, not to mention the recurring myth of films like "How to Train Your Dragon" that saw an increase in box office earnings in later weeks. It was only the first day's box office figures, and in the ever-changing North American box office market, they still had numerous opportunities for improvement. However, without a doubt, they were standing on the edge of a precipice.
It was as if they had truly fallen into the predicament of the Titanic. Their speed was too fast, their rudder too small, and the iceberg was too close, not to mention its colossal size. There was very little room left for self-rescue. An ominous foreboding was gradually closing in, and a sense of crisis was causing every hair on their bodies to stand on end!
The opening weekend box office of "Thor" had initially been projected to reach $100M, then it was revised down to around $95M. But now, it seemed even further reduction was wise, aiming for $65M. With this steadily declining trend, they had just unleashed the biggest upset of 2011, a shocking upset!
If someone were to say that Chris's "scriptgate" had absolutely no impact, no one would believe it. This time, the negative news had a far greater impact on the box office than expected. But now, Paramount had no time to investigate responsibility. They had to concentrate all their efforts on facing the current crisis.
Now, for "Thor", the outcome of the opening battle was no longer important. Because surpassing the $95M opening weekend of "Fast 5" was no longer a possibility. The dismal Friday box office performance had essentially cut off all potential avenues.
However, what was even more terrifying was that if they didn't focus on their own box office, if they didn't step up their promotional efforts, if they didn't give their all to ensure a rebound in box office earnings on Saturday and Sunday, if... their weekend box office didn't even meet the standard of $65M, it meant they wouldn't apply enough pressure on the second-week box office of "Fast 5". This also meant that, after "Fast 5" turned in an extraordinary drop in second-week earnings, they might even lose the weekend box office competition, let alone the victory in the opening battle. That would be a true catastrophic failure.
It was terrifying, truly terrifying. Just imagining it made one shudder. From being dismissive, to being neck and neck, to falling behind, this continuous retreat was truly alarming!
This year's summer blockbuster season was indeed abnormal, and now, the outcome of the opening battle was unpredictable, with no industry insider daring to claim they could accurately predict it.
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