Nearly Washed Up in the U.S., 'Pirates' Finds Loot Overseas
May 29 2017 - 2:08PM
Dow Jones News
By Ben Fritz
Johnny Depp and his "Pirates" crew took on water during a slow
Memorial Day weekend at the domestic box office but found treasure
overseas.
"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales," the fifth
entry in Walt Disney Co.'s $4 billion franchise, opened to a soft
$77 million over the long holiday weekend in the U.S. and Canada,
according to studio estimates. It is a lower start than that of any
prior "Pirates" movie since the 2003 original.
A flop from the weekend's other new release, "Baywatch," brought
the overall holiday weekend box office in the U.S. and Canada to
$176 million, making it a dismal No. 18 of the 24 Memorial Day
weekends recorded by ComScore since 1994.
However, the new "Pirates" launched with an impressive $208.4
million internationally, which Disney said was 17% more than 2011's
"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," the most recent
sequel, made in the same markets at current exchange rates.
"On Stranger Tides" grossed $804.6 million overseas and $241.1
million domestically. "Dead Men Tell No Tales" looks like it will
be even more lopsided.
Mr. Depp, whose Keith Richards-esque performance as pirate Jack
Sparrow made the first franchise entry a word-of-mouth phenomenon,
has had several recent flops in the U.S. including "Alice Through
the Looking Glass" and "Mortdecai," but remains popular
overseas.
After its world premiere at Shanghai Disneyland, "Dead Men Tell
No Tales" posted a strong $67.8 million opening in China. That is
higher than the total gross of any prior "Pirates" film in the
country. In Russia, its $18.1 million debut was the biggest for any
movie in history, Disney said. Other strong markets included South
Korea, Brazil and Mexico.
Though box office in the U.S. and other developed Western
nations is ultimately most profitable for Hollywood studios, as it
leads to follow-on revenue from DVD sales and television licensing,
the new "Pirates" looks like it will be a solid if not massive
success for Disney, given its $230 million production budget. It is
expected to be the final film in the series.
"Outside of how did we do relative to the last one domestically,
this is a win," said Disney distribution chief Dave Hollis. "The
bottom line is we're making a movie for a global audience."
"Pirates" is one of several major franchises that have recently
been losing steam with American audiences but prospering in
developing foreign markets, including "Fast and Furious" and
"Transformers."
Paramount Pictures' "Baywatch," an adaptation of the cheesy hit
1990s television series, grossed an estimated $27.6 million from
its Wednesday night debut through Monday. That is a weak start for
a movie led by A-list star Dwayne Johnson and with a $70 million
production budget.
The Viacom Inc.-owned studio had hoped a mixture of raunchy
R-rated comedy, action, and a beloved brand name would replicate
the success of 2012's "21 Jump Street," which grossed $201.6
million globally and spawned a sequel. But audiences weren't drawn
to "Baywatch," perhaps in part due to weak reviews.
So far "Baywatch" has opened in only one foreign market, Taiwan,
and the studio is hoping for better results overseas, thanks to the
popularity of the TV show and Mr. Johnson, said Paramount marketing
and distribution President Megan Colligan. The movie will have a
premiere in Berlin on Tuesday.
In the U.S., "Baywatch" was likely hurt by weak reviews that
spread quickly among young moviegoers on social media, said Ms.
Colligan.
Paramount has been struggling at the box office for the past few
years and "Baywatch" continues a string of recent flops such as
"Ghost in the Shell," "XXX: The Return of Xander Cage," and
"Monster Trucks." Viacom recently hired a new CEO for Paramount,
former Fox studio chief Jim Gianopulos, in hopes he will lead a
turnaround.
Write to Ben Fritz at ben.fritz@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 29, 2017 13:53 ET (17:53 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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