Box Office Report: ‘The Suicide Squad’ Underperforms
BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN
James Gunn’s “The Suicide Squad,” the R-rated comic book adaptation, received mostly-positive reviews from critics ahead of its debut weekend in theaters and on HBO Max. As one of the largest cinema releases since the pandemic, debuting on 4,002 screens in North America, all eyes were on the film to be one of the more notable success stories as audiences return to theaters.
Instead, the film was only able to earn $26.5 million. That’s enough for the number one spot at the North American box office, but not enough to be called any sort of genuine hit. Many prognosticators will no doubt point to the film’s day-and-date release on the HBO Max streaming service as one detriment to its start status, while others will be quick to point out the recent resurgence in COVID-19 cases across the U.S., thanks to the Delta variant and the ongoing struggle to convince many Americans to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
“The Suicide Squad” cost over $185 million to produce.
Overseas, the comic book film earned $35 million from 70 different territories, putting its international box office debut at $72.7 million.
The film is a sort-of redux of the 2016 film “Suicide Squad,” which starred much of the same cast in the same roles. That film, however, was a critical bomb. This new film was expected to all but erase the former film from memory. 2016’s “Suicide Squad” opened to $133 million at the box office and completed its theatrical run with nearly $800 million, worldwide.
Disney’s “Jungle Cruise” finished the weekend in second place, after debuting last weekend in the top spot. In its second weekend, the adventure film dropped 55% in box office returns with $15.7 million from 4,310 theaters. The film is also streaming on Disney+, but viewers are required to pay for Premier Access to view the film on the streaming service. So far, “Jungle Cruise” has earned $65 million in North America.
Third place, this week, belongs to M. Night Shayamalan’s “Old.” The thriller earned $4 million from 3,100 theaters. Since it debuted three weeks ago, the film has collected $38.5 million at the box office.
BOX OFFICE TOP TEN:
THE SUICIDE SQUAD (Warner Bros.) - $26,500,000
JUNGLE CRUISE (Disney) - $15,700,000
OLD (Universal) - $4,100,000
BLACK WIDOW (Disney/Marvel) - $4,000,000
STILLWATER (Focus) - $2,860,000
THE GREEN KNIGHT (A24) - $2,600,000
SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY (Warner Bros.) - $2,480,000
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (Paramount) - $1,630,000
ESCAPE ROOME: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (Sony) - $1,250,000
F9 (Universal) - $1,200,000
