It hasn’t even played in theaters for three full weeks yet, but Warner Bros.’Furiosa: A Mad Max Sagaalready appears to be nearing the end of its disappointing run. The moviedropped out of the top five at the domestic box office this weekend, where it was overtaken not only by the family-friendlyIFbut also the holdover hitKingdom of the Planet of the Apes. But the writing was on the wall in the film’s opening weekend itself, when it debuted to worryingly low numbers after what seemed like incredibly positive online buzz following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.
Furiosahas grossed only $58 million domestically so far, and another $85 million from overseas markets, fora cumulative global haul of $144 million. It’s easily one of the biggest underperformers of the year, after Universal’sThe Fall Guy. Directed byGeorge Miller,Furiosagrossed $26 million in its first weekend at the domestic box office and fell by a hefty 59% in weekend two. In the third weekend, when most films find their footing,Furiosahad an even harsher fall (61%), losing around 900 theaters. At this rate, the movie will wrap up its run with around $70 million domestically, if it’s lucky. All this against a reported budget as high as around $170 million.
And the situation isn’t much brighter overseas, either. Even Miller’s compatriots in Australia didn’t show up to watch the film; the movie has grossed only a little over $2 million Down Under. Its top-grossing overseas market is South Korea, followed by the United Kingdom, Mexico, and France. This weekend,Furiosadebuted in China, where it made a little over $3 million. By comparison,Mad Max: Fury Roadgrossed over $150 million domestically and nearly $370 million worldwide in 2015, against a reported budget of around $160 million. The movie wasn’t a smash hit, but was critically acclaimed upon release — it won six Oscars from 10 nominations and is widely considered to beone of the greatest action movies of all time.
‘Furiosa’ Is One of the Biggest Underperformers of The Year
Reviews forFuriosahave been positive as well. The movie appears to havesettled at a 90% approval ratingon the aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, with critics noting its more epic narrative and lofty philosophical ideas as compared to the first film, which was hailed for its achievements in action choreography. But audiences simply weren’t interested in watching a prequel about the warrior Furiosa, who was played so memorably byCharlize TheroninFury Road. Unlike that film, which was set over a couple of days,Furiosatakes place over a decade and featuresAlyla BrowneandAnya Taylor-Joyin the titular role. Also starringChris Hemsworth,Tom Burke, andLachy Hulme,Furiosais the first Mad Max movie to not feature the character at all.
WhileFuriosa’s inability to, as Dr. Dementus would say, “make it epic” might have come as a surprise, the Mad Max franchise has never quite adhered to Hollywood norms and can trace its origins to the Ozploitation movement in Australia. Starring a little-knownMel Gibsonin the titular role, the grimy first film was released in 1979. It was a box office success, grossing $100 million globally and introducing the world to theAustralian New Wave. A sequel,Mad Max 2— released asThe Road Warriorin the U.S. — followed in 1981, and also garnered widespread acclaim.The Road Warrioris often regarded as one of the greatest sequels of all time, and grossed over $40 million globally. A third film,Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, opened to relatively muted response in 1985. Co-directed byGeorge Ogilvie— this remains the only time Miller surrendered the reins of the series to anybody else — the movie made over $35 million globally and served as Gibson’sfinal time playing the character.
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Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
The origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa before her encounter and team-up with Mad Max.
