“Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” debuted at the international box office with an impressive $80 million in ticket sales, which is not bad considering those figures are comparable to those of subsequent underwhelming big-budget superhero films such as “The Flash,” “The Marvels,” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
Commencing worldwide with $120 million, the comic book sequel, directed by James Wan and featuring Jason Momoa as the monarch of Atlantis, has grossed a lackluster $40 million in North America.
The Warner Bros. and DC film, which was produced at a cost of $205 million, is likely to be DC’s latest underperforming tentpole, following “The Flash,” “Shazam! Fury of the Gods,” and “Blue Beetle” this year.
“Aquaman 2” is encountering difficulties not only due to negative reviews and average audience reception, but also because it has been positioned as a peripheral figure in the DC Extended Universe. It is the last installment before James Gunn and Peter Safran, DC’s new overlords, reset the expansive superhero universe… most likely without Momoa’s underwater kingdom ruler.
The initial installment, “Aquaman,” was released in 2018, a period when films based on comic books were consistently profitable. A worldwide commercial phenomenon, it grossed $816 million on an international level and $1.14 billion in total. The initial week gross of the original was $93 million, and it concluded at $292 million in China. However, since the pandemic, Hollywood films have struggled to be successful in China, and “The Lost Kingdom” was no different. With only $30 million grossing across 28,140 screens over the weekend, the sequel failed to even come close to matching the success of the original. Other prominent international markets, excluding the Middle Kingdom, included Mexico ($3.6 million), Indonesia ($3.6 million), France ($3.2 million), and the United Kingdom ($3 million).
“The Chinese market for American films is a fraction of what it once was,” says David A. Gross, the founder of the film consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. “In general, international business should remain satisfactory, albeit not exceptional.”
While Warners may not be ecstatic about “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” the studio has reason to be even more jubilant with “Wonka,” which surpassed $250 million in revenue within its first two weeks of release.
Timothée Chalamet portrayed the eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka in the prequel, which grossed an additional $33.2 million across 77 international markets on the previous weekend, representing a marginal 33% decline. To date, “Wonka” has grossed $254.9 million and generated $171.3 million internationally. A delectable tally considering the film’s budget of $100 million.
Away from the United States, after two weeks of release, the animated comedy “Migration,” produced by Universal and Illumination, has grossed a meager $22 million at the international box office. It grossed $17 million in North America during the four-day holiday period, bringing its global total to $34 million. A reasonable $70 million was spent on the film, which was written by Mike White and featured the voices of Kumail Nanjiani, Elizabeth Banks, and Awkwafina. However, the studio hopes that “Migration” will have the same enduring impact as recent family films like “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” and “Elemental” by Pixar. Audience and review acclaim for the adventure, which follows ducks as they migrate south for the winter, has been favorable, which forecasts well for its holiday run.
