With a marketing campaign that heavily teased Spider-Man's involvement in Morbius and branded the Living Vampire a "New Marvel Legend," perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that the movie isn't flopping as hard at the box office as it is with critics. Despite boasting a 15% score on Rotten Tomatoes, the Sony Pictures blockbuster earned $5.7 million in Thursday previews at the U.S. box office.
Now, the latest estimates point to a $33 million - $40+ million opening weekend. That may be a drop from the $50 million predictions we heard last month, but it's far from a terrible result for a movie that cost only $75 million to produce. It's also only slightly less than Shazam!'s $5.9 million in 2019, and that ended up grossing a solid $53.5 million during its first weekend.
At the end of the day, word of mouth will be key. In March 2016, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice opened to record-breaking numbers before plummeting in its second weekend of release. Ultimately, it would be considered something of a box office disappointment by Warner Bros., and it's worth noting that this Thursday previews number is quite a bit below what Venom: Let There Be Carnage earned.
Only time will tell what happens from here, but negative reviews didn't hurt Venom 2 movie or Uncharted. Whether it's the Marvel branding, Jared Leto's involvement, or the fact that filmgoers just want new content, poor reviews have failed to put a stake through the heart of this vampire's box office chances.
"Jared Leto’s transformation makes for compelling viewing," we said in our review, "but the Living Vampire can’t elevate a disappointing story that serves as a powerful, dare we say terrifying, reminder that Spider-Man is better off (and safer) in the MCU with Marvel Studios."
Check out our exclusive interview with Morbius star Jared Leto in the player below:
About The Author:
Comic Book Reader. Film Lover. WWE and F1 Fan. Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic and ComicBookMovie.com's #1 contributor.