Red Onehas passed a major global box office milestone, but it isn’t enough to make up for its huge budget. The holiday action-comedy movie follows the kidnapping of Santa Claus (J. K. Simmons) and the mismatched pair who attempt to rescue him, namely the nice Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson), the North Pole’s security commander, and the naughty Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans), a notorious bounty hunter hacker. TheRed Onereleasekicked off the holiday blockbuster season as the first big-budget Hollywood tentpole of November.
PerVariety,Red Oneis projected to close out its second weekend in international theaters with a 3-day gross of $14.7 million. This total, combined with its opening weekend gross of $34.1 million at the domestic box office, sees this weekendbringing its cumulative worldwide gross to $84.1 million. While it has passed the $80 million global milestone, this total just barely makes up for a third of its whopping $250 million production budget.
What This Means For Red One
The Movie’s Prospects Are Unclear
Despite becoming the 39th movie of the year so far to pass the $80 million global milestone and doing so after just three days in domestic theaters, the new action-comedy is still far from ending up in the black. Generally, a movie needs to earn two-and-a-half times its production budget in order to break even. Given the fact that theRed Onebudgetis a reported $250 million, not counting its publicity costs,it likely needs to earn $625 million or more in order to break even in theaters.
Red One’s international release began early with a debut in the UK and Ireland on November 6 and in Latin America on November 7, in addition to early screenings beginning on Halloween.
Reaching its break-even point during its theatrical run may not be a major goal forRed One, asit was originally designed for a Prime Video exclusive streaming releasebefore pivoting to theaters. Even if it doesn’t break even, this theatrical run will act as advertising for its eventual streaming run, which is likely to be timed to hit just before Christmas. If that bolsters its at-home viewership, the movie could become an asset for their library, even if its path toward genuine profitability is still very long.
Our Take On The Red One Box Office
Its Outlook Could Still Be Rough
While its streaming release could help its prospects, things are still looking bleak. Its global gross is relatively robust, but it still pales in comparison to the box office grosses of other recent tentpoles such asBeetlejuice Beetlejuice,Dune: Part Two, orTwisters, all of which grossed more than $80 million in their domestic debuts alone. Additionally,Red Onereviewshave earned it a dismal 33% Rotten Tomatoes score andinternational markets are seemingly unprepared to bolster it like other four-quadrant tentpoles, potentially because not every overseas territory celebrates Christmas and thus may not be interested in the subject matter.
Red One
Cast
After Santa Claus is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with a notorious bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a thrilling, globe-spanning mission to save Christmas. This action-packed holiday adventure mixes comedy and festive magic, with an ensemble cast that includes Lucy Liu and J.K. Simmons.
