There was a lot of confusion and speculation last week about how the COVID-19 pandemic would affect moviegoers and theaters. After a whirlwind week with multiple companies indefinitely closing, sports seasons cancelling and the president declaring a national emergency, we now have a much clearer picture of how this disease will impact Hollywood. Short answer: it ain’t good!
Onward came in at number one this weekend, earning just $10,532,000. That’s about a 73% drop from last weekend’s debut. Just $10 million and it’s number one. That’s wild. It doesn’t bode well for the future of Onward, which will be a rare bomb for Pixar for no fault of its own. In fact, it’ll be a struggle for the movie to even make $100 million domestically. A Pixar film missing the $100 million mark shows you just how dire things are. Again, that’s not the fault of the movie or Disney or Pixar. Blame this one on the coronavirus.
The entire top ten only brought in $55 million this weekend, which is the lowest box office weekend since 1998. Can you believe that? The last time the box office was this weak was when John Carpenter’s Vampires premiered in late October 1998. Remember Vampires? Remember how long ago that was? That was before the new millennium, Facebook, 9/11, Netflix, Blu-rays. Bill Clinton was still president and the idea of watching television in high definition was just a pipe dream. That was ages ago.
This is the worst weekend in a long, long time.
Christian film I Still Believe came in at number two with $9,500,000. The movie has gotten good reviews from critics and audiences and likely would have earned a lot more if the coronavirus wasn’t making its presence known. The same is true for Vin Diesel’s Bloodshot, which is number three with a gross of $9,300,000. I’m not saying Bloodshot would have done Marvel numbers or anything like that but it certainly would have broken $10 million if things were different. I don’t know if the same is true for newcomer The Hunt, which only scrounged up $5,320,000. That movie was a tough sell in any environment. Still, it’s yet another movie that was hit hard by the virus.
All across the board you see massive drops from the week before. The Invisible Man dipped 60%, Emma. fell 70%. You know that so much of these drops are because people are too afraid to go to theaters. And theater companies are making it harder and harder to fill seats. AMC and other chains are limiting the amount of tickets sold and encouraging — no, requiring — social distancing from their patrons. Going to the movies has always been a distraction in troubled times but a theater isn’t a peaceful getaway in the midst of a pandemic. It’s a dark room full of anonymous strangers who could possibly infect you. It’s not a distraction to some, it’s a breeding ground.
I want to commend theater chains for enacting these rules. I personally don’t feel that it’s overreacting, I think it’s preparation. While COVID-19 isn’t as bad as, say, Ebola it’s still no joke. For many it is an inconvenience like the common flu but for others it is life-threatening and to everyone it’s a major threat to our economy and ultimately our normal way of life. I think taking precautions to slow its spread is smart and the right thing to do. Now, should people be stocking up on toilet paper? Definitely not. But an over-abundance of caution is the right approach.
We are not sure what the weeks (and months) ahead will look like for the box office. The next weeks have no new releases scheduled now that A Quiet Place Part II, Mulan, New Mutants and plenty of other films have been postponed. So we are about to enter more brand new territory. Expect soft numbers for the foreseeable future, perhaps the softest we’ve ever seen.
We are living through some bizarre, unsettling times. It’s a damn shame that even movies aren’t providing the distraction and pleasure that they usually do. But I will say this: movies can still create joy and peace and familiarity during these trying times. Yes, maybe going to the theater doesn’t feel super comfortable right now. I can understand that. But throw on some old DVDs of your favorite films, stream a classic you haven’t seen yet. Make the best of social distancing and stay home with something fun to watch. Don’t panic, wash your hands and watch a movie.
