I’ve been reading Deadline.com’s reporting all week that has been shocked SHOCKED at steadily dropping expectations for the HUGE opening weekend for “Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3.”
The summer’s debut blockbuster was sporting $135-150 million prognostications. Early. And then people started seeing it. By “people” I mean “critics.”
Granted, there isn’t really a reviewing consensus on this threequel. Some praised it to the moon, but a lot of people sitting in the dark taking notes mentioned the fact that it’s a bummer. Not much fun. Not deep, either, although an anti-animal-testing message is an attempt at making this meaningless fun adventure “about” something.
Could the fanboyouisie sense “not all that” from the trailers, or the reviews? Thursday night previews cleared the $17 million mark. Not bad. But exactly the same take — pretty much — as “Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania.” And that’s widely acknowledged as an underperformer, opening weekend on through the run, and a bit of a bummer to boot.
Friday’s take added to “Guardians'” Thursday and we’re looking at a good-not-epic $110 million opening weekend.
There’ll be no parking in the garage with the motor running over that. And remember the standard set by “Super Mario Bros.” Here’s the year’s biggest hit, and it is crap with half a billion bucks in the bank. Most critics panned it or were at best lukeworm for it, and it’s made a mint.
“Guardians” is doing great overseas, but maybe a sunnier send-off would have made Marvel happy and not looked like James Gunn leaving a not-quite-poison-pill behind as he leaves to give DC comic book adaptations a lift.
I’ll be updating these figures as more data pours in Sat., but right now, that’s where “Guardians” stands. Is the audience for these franchises reaching its saturation point?
“Super Mario Bros.” will rake in another $18 million and change.
“Evil Dead Rise” will collect another $5+. “Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret” will add a paultry $3 million or so.
“John Wick: Chapter 4” will add another $2 and change, and finish its run short of $200 million.
Sony rolled out a romance an unpreviewed unheralded romance, “Love Again,” as counter-programming, and it’ll clear $2 and finish in the top five, not bad counter-programming.
The results from Box Office Pro
Movie Nation 
My thoughts are that hit movies are sanctioned as being money-makers and sequels are birn of how well they do. If the second is a hit, they go for a third. The problem is that often times the creators become lazy in knowing they’ll be paid for the second round out of anticipation. That laziness makes insulted fans take note.