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Are the Minions losing their star power?
Although “Minions & Monsters,” a 1920s Hollywood-set prequel in the animated “Despicable Me” universe, led the box office over the Fourth of July weekend, the well-reviewed family
film opened way behind projections with $36 million from 4,243 North American locations between Friday and Monday and $64.5 million since Wednesday. Heading into the weekend, “Minions & Monsters” was aiming for $80 million over the five-day frame. Initial sales are a huge drop from its predecessors and rank as the lowest start in the franchise, below even the original 2010’s “Despicable Me” which managed to earn $56 million (not adjusted for inflation) over the traditional weekend while introducing the yellow, pill-shaped agents of chaos to the world.
Box office watchers had anticipated a softer turnout across the industry over the holiday weekend since July 4th landed on Saturday. They assumed that instead of going to theaters on the busiest day of the week for moviegoing, people would be attending BBQs and watching fireworks to celebrate America’s 250th birthday.
That likely accounted for some drop-off, but that doesn’t explain such a massive opening weekend decline from the franchise’s two most recent entries, 2022’s spinoff sequel “Minions: The Rise of Gru” and 2024’s “Despicable Me 4,” which launched to $123 million and $122 million, respectively, over the same five-day holiday stretch. After all, families didn’t totally avoid the big screen: “Toy Story 5” earned almost as much over the Friday to Sunday stretch with $31 million from 3,975 venues in its fifth weekend of release. Disney and Pixar’s kid-friendly film was No. 2 at the domestic box office and boosted grosses to $366 million in North America and $764 million worldwide.
For “Minions & Monsters,” which was received positively by audiences and critics, the disappointing domestic figure suggests the franchise is becoming overexploited. There has been seven “Despicable Me” chapters across 16 years, averaging a new adventure about every two years. That’s in contrast to “Toy Story,” which has benefited from scarcity, having produced only five installments over 30 years.
There is good news for Universal and Illumination, the two companies behind the commercially successful property. “Minions & Monsters” is a hit at the international box office with $86 million over the weekend and $98 million to date, bringing the worldwide total to $159.8 million. And prior “Despicable Me” adventures and spinoffs have demonstrated notable box office staying power, so “Minions & Monsters” could stick around throughout the summer despite the slower start. Critics and audiences dug the movie, which was directed by series co-creator Pierre Coffin and holds a stellar 91% on Rotten Tomatoes and “A-” grade on CinemaScore exit polls. The film was produced for $85 million, making it slightly less expensive than prior entries, which cost around $100 million each.
“Seven [installments] is further than any animation series has gone. Audiences are showing fatigue now,” says David A. Gross, who publishes the box office newsletter FranchiseRe. “The movie will be profitable, but it’s a misfire.”
Elsewhere at the domestic box office, “Supergirl” endured a tragic 74% decline with $9.6 million from 3,602 screens in its sophomore outing. Rivals believe the final weekend number will be lower when estimates are officially tallied on Monday. After debuting to just $37.1 million domestically, the Warner Bros. and DC comic book adaptation has earned $58.5 million in North America and $100.5 million globally to date. Such a weak turnout underscores the challenges facing the once-dominant box office genre of superhero movies, particularly those centered on lesser-known protagonists. Last year’s “Superman” was a hit, and this month’s “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” is expected to be enormous. But those films feature A-list heroes; everyone on the planet knows Clark Kent and Peter Parker. “Supergirl” and Marvel’s 2025 adventure “Thunderbolts,” another recent theatrical misfire, revolved around characters who aren’t household names. Given its hefty $170 million budget, “Supergirl” is projected to lose atleast $100 million to $120 millionin its theatrical run — and that figure could be even higher if the film fails to reach $200 million globally.
“Supergirl” ranked No. 4 on weekend charts behind “Young Washington,” which opened in third with an impressive $20.8 million from 2,700 theaters. The patriotic historical drama, whose release was smartly timed to Independence Day, was backed by the faith-based Angel Studios. The company’s inspirational films tend to be well-received by their target demographic, and “Young Washington” was no different. The movie, which tells the story of George Washington before the American Revolutionary War and his presidency, earned an “A” grade on CinemaScore, in stark contrast to the 57% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
“The story is told from a patriotic, pro-America and faith-oriented point of view, and the release coincides with the nation’s 250th anniversary,” Gross says. “There’s limited potential overseas, but the domestic run should be good. Angel Studios knows how to reach this audience.”
A24’s comedy “The Invite” managed to crack the top 10 with $800,700 while playing on just 28 screens. That brings the total haul to $1.36 million after to weekends in limited release. With great reviews, the movie’s commercial appeal will be tested when it expands nationwide on July 10. Directed by Olivia Wilde, “The Invite” stars her and Seth Rogen as a bickering married couple who host a dinner party for their far more free-spirited upstairs neighbors (Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton).
Paramount’s comedy “Jackass: Best and Last,” which opened last weekend to weak ticket sales, dropped to the No. 8 spot with $2.7 million from 2,855 theaters, a harsh 68% decline. The R-rated film has generated a paltry $14.6 million domestically and $20 million worldwide, so it’ll almost certainly wind up as the lowest grossing installment of the five films. However, “Jackass 5” cost just $10 million to produce, so it doesn’t need that much coinage to get out of the red.
More to come…
