Every now and then the last weekend of the summer cinema season produces a movie that lands, even a movie that sticks around to make itself an Oscar contender.

The John LeCarre adaptation “The Constant Gardener” is the exception that proves that rule.

This summer ends in far more typical fashion, with four cast-off titles — “Reagan,” released by a conservative-targeting start up distributor, the John Cho AI horror tale “AfrAId,” the shelved-then-released Lionsgate thriller “1992,” a final bow for the late Ray Liotta, and a Bleecker Street sci-fi offering that doesn’t have enough screens or star power (Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne) to make a mark — “Slingshot.”

“Reagan” had a weak pulse Thursday –$500k or so — but constant promotion on right wing media might give this critically derided hagiography a shot at $9 million over a four day holiday weekend, closer to $7 over three days.

“AfrAId” did only $400K Thursday and underscores my long-standing question, “Where did the horror audience go?” Poor reviews won’t help. A John Cho thriller (“Searching”) made a very late August mark a few years back. Not this time. $4 million.

“1992” got middling to decent reviews, but its star power is as limited as all the others, and it doesn’t have Fox/OAN/Rogan cheerleading it. It won’t crack the top ten.

“Slingshot” got the best (mixed) reviews of any of them but that won’t keep it from flatlining.

Deadline.com reports that the summer season, lacking that second Marvel tentpole, fell about half a billion below last summer. “Deadpool & Wolverine” — just now crossing the $600 million domestic line — and the summer’s biggest hit ($642 million) “Inside/Out 2” did great. But “This Ends with Us,” a solid hit, was no “Barbie” or “Oppenheimer,” Kevin Costner’s “Horizon” underwhelmed, so summer 2024 underperformed, start to finish.

I’ll update this Labor Day weekend take as more data bubbles up.