After two down weeks at the box office, December kicks into high gear beginning this weekend with Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse. There are two other new wide releases that could make some kind of impression as we begin the lucrative tail-end of the December box office that is usually gracious to many films.
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse didn’t initially seem poised to truly ignite the box office but that all changed as it drew closer to its release. The big game changer at play was the initial reviews which had the film registering a staggering 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Some are calling it the best Spider-Man adaptation, even better than some of the live-action efforts. The film now has a 98% fresh rating as of this writing and it makes it one of the best-reviewed films of the year. If anyone was having doubts about the film’s quality, they were put at ease once the early reviews started pouring in.
Sony has been screening this movie for the last month and has stoked the awards season media with the animated feature earning Best Animated Feature nominations from the Golden Globes, Critics Choice, and the Annie Awards (as well as six other noms), along with Best Animated Feature wins from the New York Film Critics Circle and the Detroit Film Critics Society. A Best Animated Feature Oscar nomination really can’t be too far behind for the film. Some are suggesting that there is more buzz behind this film than there was for Venom and that opened to $80.2 million despite its rotten score of 28%. I don’t think that Spider-Verse has enough mainstream appeal to break out that big right at the gate but a $35-40 million opening seems likely and I expect to see incredible legs for the film as we head into the new year.
Looking to appeal to the older demographic is The Mule, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. The film stars the Oscar winner as a 90-year old man who becomes a successful drug mule for a Mexican cartel. At first, I was concerned about the lack of early reviews but the film had a positive response at its Hollywood premiere this week and the early Rotten Tomatoes score is encouraging at 82% fresh. While it may not be an awards player, it looks like Eastwood is playing to the sensibilities that have made him mostly reliable at the box office with his target audience. The Mule is likely to appeal to the older crowd not looking for prestige Oscar choices and just want an entertaining and adult experience at the movies. I’m predicting about $16-18 million for its opening weekend.
Also debuting this weekend is Mortal Engines and it’s a film I feel like I’ve already seen because the trailer has been attached to almost every film I’ve seen the last few months. The movie is set in the post-apocalyptic future where cities ride on wheels (yes, you read that right) and it’s a very pricey endeavor for Universal as it carried a budget between $100-150 million. Even with the benefit of the holiday push which helps most films over-index at the box office, there still won’t enough gas in the tank to save the film from being of the biggest financial misfires of the year. Reviews certainly aren’t helping as the film is rotten at 32% on Rotten Tomatoes and post-apocalyptic films tend to stall at the box office unless they come from some kind of familiar source material. I’m calling an opening of about $10-13 million and it’s likely to be one of the holiday films lost in the shuffle as we head into the new year.
