This has not been a great year for major studio tentpoles (probably an understatement), but it may still surprise you to learn that only one movie with a budget of $200 million+ has managed to earn a profit in 2023: Marvel Studios' Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Disney's latest animated feature Wish and Ridley Scott's historical epic Napoleon both opened last week, bringing the number of $200M-budgeted films to 13 for 2023 so far, and while it's obviously early days, box office estimates don't bode well for either of them busting any blocks.
Next month sees the release of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, but long-range box office forecasts are not good (more here), so James Gunn's threequel will most likely remain the only $200M movie to turn a profit for its respective studio.
This doesn't mean 2023 hasn't had its share of successes, with the likes of Barbie and Oppenheimer massively exceeding expectations at the box office - but those budgets didn't pass the $150 million mark.
Will this lead to studios pumping less money into their biggest projects going forward? Disney's Bob Iger has already indicated that the Mouse House/Marvel will be doing just that, but at the end of the day, these huge superhero event films are going to cost what they cost, so it might be a better strategy to focus on quality over quantity and try to entice more people into the theater!
"In Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 our beloved band of misfits are settling into life on Knowhere. But it isn’t long before their lives are upended by the echoes of Rocket’s turbulent past." "Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him on a dangerous mission to save Rocket’s life—a mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them."
James Gunn writes and directs Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, featuring Vin Diesel as Groot, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Sean Gunn, Chukwudi Iwuji, Will Poulter, and Maria Bakalova. Kevin Feige is the producer and Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Nikolas Korda, Simon Hatt, and Sara Smith serve as executive producers.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now available on Digital platforms, and on Disney+, as well as DVD and Blu-ray.