If you'd expected Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga to race away from The Garfield Movie with ease at the U.S. box office this long Memorial Day weekend, guess again. According to Deadline (via SFFGazette.com), they're in a dead heat of $31 million over four days and $25 million over three days.
One will ultimately emerge with the win but, as we write this, it's simply too soon to tell.
Critics sunk their claws into The Garfield Movie, something that's evident from its 37% Rotten Tomatoes score. In contrast, Furiosa is "Certified Fresh" at 89%.
Unfortunately, no matter who wins, it appears theaters will once again lose. This is the lowest opening for a Memorial Day weekend in 29 years (when Casper opened with a mere $22 million in 1995).
Where did it go wrong? The trade believes Warner Bros. Discovery waited too long to start hyping Furiosa, with the last leg of the marketing campaign not kicking off until late May. Other insiders believe Anya Taylor-Joy simply isn't the draw that Charlize Theron was when Mad Max: Fury Road was released in 2015, though that seems a little unfair when MCU veteran Chris Hemsworth is co-starring.
As for The Garfield Movie's struggles, we can likely blame the negative reviews (parents with excited children are unlikely to care, but animation fans will undoubtedly take note of them).
Interestingly enough, that and Furiosa have received the same CinemaScore from moviegoers, suggesting neither have blown them away.
As the world fell, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland, they come across the Citadel presided over by The Immortan Joe. While the two Tyrants war for dominance, Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home.
Anya Taylor-Joy stars in the title role, and along with Chris Hemsworth as Dementus, the film also stars Alyla Browne and Tom Burke.
Miller penned the script with Mad Max: Fury Road co-writer Nico Lathouris. The filmmaker has enlisted an impressive creative team, including several of his longtime collaborators (including costume designer Jenny Beavan and makeup designer Lesley Vanderwalt, both of whom won an Oscar for their work on Fury Road).
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is now playing in theaters.