Starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, the movie reportedly still hasn’t recovered its budget.
The Big Picture
- Universal’s
The Fall Guy
struggles at the box office despite stabilization this weekend. - The film is unlikely to recoup its reported production costs with its global haul falling short of expectations.
- Director David Leitch’s homage to the stunt community holds a “fresh” 82% score on Rotten Tomatoes despite underperforming at the box office.
There’s no two ways about it. Universal’s The Fall Guy is struggling at the box office, despite having stabilized itself this weekend. The big-budget action-comedy, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, is reportedly yet to recover production costs as it nears a digital release, which is expected to be later this month. Such a narrow theatrical window isn’t unusual in the post-pandemic world, although studios tend to delay a film’s digital release if it seems to be doing well in theaters. But The Fall Guy has been playing catch-up since the day it debuted less than three weeks ago. The movie grossed $8.5 million domestically in its third weekend while adding just over $7 million from international markets.
With $62 million domestically and another $64 million from overseas markets, the film’s cumulative global haul now stands at $127 million. Going by current trends, The Fall Guy is expected to wrap up its theatrical run with less than $200 million globally, which would be less than the lifetime haul of director David Leitch’s last release, Bullet Train.
Having started out as a stunt performer and coordinator, Leitch debuted as director (alongside Chad Stahelski) with the first John Wick movie. But while Stahelski took the original action series to new heights, Leitch branched out and delivered hit after hit in pre-established franchises such as Deadpool and Fast & Furious. The Fall Guy is his homage to the stunt community he hails from, as well as a loving tribute to moviemaking itself. But it marks a steep box office decline for both Gosling and Blunt, who starred in two of the biggest hits of 2023.
‘The Fall Guy’ Failed to Kick-Start the Summer Box Office
While Gosling appeared in Barbie, Blunt was a part of Oppenheimer’s magnificent ensemble. Both actors scored Academy Award nods for their performances, and were made the faces of an elaborate and extensive publicity campaign for The Fall Guy. The movie premiered to an enthusiastic response at this year’s South by Southwest Film Festival, alongside fellow Universal film Monkey Man. But both films appear to have been unable to translate that pre-release buzz (and stellar reviews) into box office success. The Fall Guy has settled at an 82% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with Collider’s Perri Nemiroff calling it a “dream come true” in her review.
The movie grossed $27 million in its first weekend, and added a little over $13 million in its sophomore frame, dropping to number two. It fell to number four this weekend, and will likely drop out of the top five next weekend, with Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga and The Garfield Movie looking to dominate the box office. Also starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Teresa Palmer, Stephanie Hsu, Hannah Waddingham, and Winston Duke, The Fall Guy is playing in theaters. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
The Fall Guy
Colt Seavers is a stuntman who left the business a year earlier to focus on both his physical and mental health. He’s drafted back into service when the star of a mega-budget studio movie, which is being directed by his ex, goes missing.
- Release Date
- May 3, 2024
- Director
- David Leitch
- Cast
- Emily Blunt , Hannah Waddingham , Ryan Gosling , Aaron Taylor-Johnson , Stephanie Hsu , Teresa Palmer
This article was originally published on collider.com