The year is 2002 … sorry, 2025. But it very well could be the early 2000s by the looks of the movie titles in theaters over the summer.
From a live-action reboot of the original animated classic “Lilo & Stitch” to another installment of “Jurassic Park,” Hollywood, known for breaking the rules, opted for the safer route to success: nostalgia. Did it work?
Wins
Disney’s live-action “Lilo & Stitch” hit the $1 billion mark at the global box office. It was the first movie of the year to do so, setting the bar high for other summer releases. Disney leaned on the franchise’s existing and very devoted fan base to show up to theaters, but the film wasn’t exactly critically acclaimed. Viewers complained the reengineering took away the magic, as the Deseret News previously reported.
The Warner Bros. “Minecraft” movie, inspired by the 2009 block multiplayer game, came close to making $1 billion worldwide, sitting at $955 million despite the poor reviews and early skepticism. The game’s fan base proved to be powerful.
“Jurassic World: Rebirth” also performed well. This film reset this fictional universe while building on the previous six movies and generated nearly $850 million. The same can be said for the latest “Superman,” which lagged behind the billion-dollar mark but still proved to be a success, producing a little over $600 million in global sales.
And last but not least on this list of sentimental movie titles is “Freakier Friday.” This feel-good Disney film closes the summer out by crossing $116 million in global sales despite its niche appeal. It didn’t try to reinvent the wheel and created something new and charming, according to the reviews.
Losses
What didn’t do so well? Several big studio originals didn’t meet expectations.
Marvel’s “Thunderbolts*” and “The Fantastic Four: First Steps“ are two good examples.
But their decline can be attributed to Marvel superheroes fatigue. This cinematic universe’s complex, interwoven story arcs make it tough for viewers to jump in without watching previous films. The studio spent more than $400 million to make these two movies.
Globally, “Thunderbolts*” made $382 million. It follows a new generation of antiheroes who team up and continue the storyline of the past “Avengers” movies. Meanwhile, “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” did slightly better — $492 million — but this Marvel movie is a reboot of an iconic superhero team first introduced in 1961. Nostalgia strikes yet again.
Pixar’s original “Elio” is the final case for the failure of original concepts. Where “Inside Out 2,” released last year, nearly crossed $1.7 billion, “Elio,” about an 11-year-old’s adventure in space, generated $152 million.
What’s coming to theaters
Hollywood is listening, or at least playing close attention to the numbers. The proof is in the titles slated for the rest of the year. “Tron: Ares,” a standalone sequel to the cyberspace movie franchise, comes to theaters in October.
Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein” also releases the same month. In November, “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t,” the third film surrounding magicians and heists, graces theaters, as does “Wicked: For Good,” the second and final installment. There’s also “Zootopia 2″ (Nov. 26) and “Avatar: Fire and Ash (Dec. 19). All these titles come with a certain guarantee: You know what you’re getting into.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com ’
