Ezra Miller’s ‘The Flash’ and Pixar’s ‘Elemental’ Meet Headwinds at the Box Office

Both long-awaited superhero photos from DC The flash and Pixar Elementary have their work cut out for them before it opens in North American theaters on June 16, according to initial tracking.

The flash, with Ezra Miller in the lead role, is set to open in the $70 million range, according to sources with access to the tracking data. Box office insiders say it’s a low number for a film that’s been heavily promoted by Warner Brothers Discovery as the best superhero movie of all time. Others note that a film’s catch once it opens is more important than its opening weekend gross.

At the end of April, The flash was the toast of CinemaCon. “It’s the best superhero movie I’ve ever seen,” WBD CEO David Zaslav told theater owners before being shown the full movie.

The photo opens after a tumultuous 2022 for Miller, who has been arrested multiple times and has been the subject of controversy, culminating in the actor releasing a statement in August last year apologizing for their behavior and saying that he was allegedly getting help for “complex mental health issues”. .”

Miller plays dual roles as alternate timeline versions of heroic speedster Barry Allen, with Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck making flashy returns of their respective Batman roles (in Keaton’s case, it’s a return to a character he hasn’t played since 1991 ). Sasha Calle plays Supergirl, while Michael Shannon reprises his role of General Zod from the 2013 film Man of Steel.

After the tepid representation of Shazam! Fury of the Gods AND Black Adam, Warner DC films could be box office hits. At the same time, The flash it is one of the last films left over from the previous regime. The studio is now managed by James Gunn and Peter Safran, who plan to relaunch the label with Gunn’s Superman: Legacy.

Warner Bros. still has three weeks to make its final marketing push The flashwhich means there are many benefits in terms of generating interest and awareness, according to insiders.

Ditto for Pixar and Disney. Elementary it’s tracking even weaker numbers, or $40 million nationwide, according to the sources.

The studio has only kicked off the film’s marketing campaign in recent days, including an integration with american idol. Elementary makes its world premiere this weekend at the Cannes Film Festival.

If tracking remains as is, Elementary will join The good dinosaur AND After you being one of the few Pixar films to open to under $50 million (the next two films both opened to $39 million domestically). And there were a lot of negative headlines when Ratatouille opened to $47 million before turning into a box office sensation.

Pixar, like DC, could use a box office win. During the pandemic, the historic animation studio has seen its films sent directly to Disney+, so it hasn’t had a title in theaters since After youexcluding reissues. After you opened on March 6, 2020, days before the COVID-19 crisis led to unprecedented theater closures.

Disney previewed 20 minutes of Elementary at Cinema Con. Directed by Peter Sohn (The good dinosaur), the film is set in Element City, where residents of fire, water, earth and air coexist. Its themes include connection, celebrating differences, and finding one’s place in the world.

The story follows Ember (Leah Lewis), a tough, witty and fiery young woman whose friendship with a saccharine boy named Wade (Mamoudou Athiec) challenges her beliefs about the world they live in, where “the elements don’t mix.”