This weekend saw the release of what some box office analysts are calling the first bomb summer, with the arrival of Masters of the Universe. The film, carrying a reported $170-200 million budget, opened to $29.4 million domestically and $54.4 million worldwide, which is not the best start for a summer tentpole release that has imminent competition on the horizon. Despite decent reviews (67 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and an encouraging audience score on the aggregator site (88 percent), Masters of the Universe faces a huge uphill battle to justify future installments, although Amazon MGM Studios does factor in other aspects that may not be important to other studios when it comes to seeing a future return on investment. Building an IP that can sustain life down the road can be tough, and Master of the Universe also faces the challenge of determining which demographic this film, and any future endeavors, was actually made for.
Directed by Travis Knight and from a screenplay by Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, and David Callaham, Masters of the Universe is based on the media franchise from Mattel and serves as the second live-action adaptation of the property after the 1987 film, which ultimately failed at the box office but would go on to become a cult classic. In the film, Prince Adam (Nicholas Galitzine), now residing on Earth, must return to his home planet of Eternia to answer his destiny as He-Man and save it from Skeletor (Jared Leto) and his forces of evil. The film also stars Camila Mendes, Alison Brie, James Purefoy, Charlotte Riley, Krisin Wiig, Morena Baccarin, and Idris Elba.
Who Was Masters of the Universe Made For?
When Masters of the Universe entered tracking, and pre-sales began for the film, the movie seemed poised for a $30-35 million opening weekend, but signs of trouble emerged when that figure didn’t budge ahead of its opening weekend. Even though early reviews and social reviews were positive leading up to its opening, it didn’t seem to make much of a difference and that was concerning, especially since positive word of mouth would’ve been helpful considering Masters of the Universe was already entering a crowded marketplace full of leftover box office hits (Michael, Obsession, and Backrooms), as well as a new release whose pre-sales indicated a franchise-best opening weekend (Scary Movie, which claimed the top spot with a $54.3 million domestic opening and a $104.8 million global start on a more reasonable $30 million budget).
The early reviews on social media seemed to tell the story of which audience would respond more to the film, and it was the demographic that was far more familiar with the IP from its inception in the ’80s. That’s not to say an adult demographic showing more interest is bad, but for Mattel, hoping to sell toys and other merchandise, bringing in kids was essential, but according to the demo breakdown for the weekend, kids made up a very small fraction of the audience. Exit polling shows that the audience of kids under 12 made up four percent of the crowd. Not a great figure for an IP that needs this new audience to fuel toy sales. What’s more telling is who showed up for Masters of the Universe. The film, unsurprisingly, skewed heavily male at 68 percent, and 57 percent of the audience was over 35, while 36 percent was over 45. When compared to something like Barbie, another film based on a Mattel media franchise that broke box office records, the way the demo was skewed didn’t do the movie a lot of favors. Barbie was able to tap into nostalgia but managed to feel current. Masters of the Universe seemed to struggle with that.
Masters of the Universe certainly brought in an audience that catered to dads, children of the ’80s, and maybe even collectors of all things nostalgic, but the film’s marketing failed to ignite interest in children and even teens who could be looking for a fun summer romp. In a marketplace that is becoming increasingly dominated by younger crowds, an older-audience IP is a tougher sell unless it has a hook that will get them interested. Judging by the film’s opening weekend, Masters of the Universe enticed the nostalgia crowd, but given its pricetag that’s upwards of $200 milllion plus marketing costs, the movie needed more universal appeal.
Is There A Chance For Masters of the Universe To Bounce Back?
After the opening weekend, a film then has to look to its future, and that is determined by word of mouth. Masters of the Universe earned a decent “B” CinemaScore from opening day audiences, which isn’t spectacular for this kind of film, but its 88 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and solid 64 percent definite recommend on PostTrak is a bit more promising. Also interesting is that, even though the younger crowd didn’t exactly show up, the ones that did really enjoyed it, with the under-12 audience recommending it at 96 percent and 57 percent calling it a must-see right away.
Everything about the film’s exit polling in terms of response to the film seems encouraging, but competition already gets stiff with the arrival of Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day this weekend. Pre-sales have been solid, suggesting an opening weekend close to $60 million (not bad for a film with a $115 million budget), and even though the film also skews older, it takes away some of the dad crowd who may have been interested in another round with He-Man, and the alien hook is an angle that could even appeal to the younger demographic. Throw in holdovers like Scary Movie, which appealed to a young and diverse audience, along with the continued success of Obsession and Backrooms, it’s possible that there won’t be room for Masters of the Universe to maintain a hold that indicates strong legs in the weeks ahead.
Beyond this weekend, Toy Story 5 is going to dominate across many demographics when it opens next week, thanks to the IP showing consistent appeal with audiences of all ages. Some tracking shows a potential opening weekend between $150-170 million, with a chance for even more, and that will be driven by families, children and just about any demo familiar with Woody and Buzz. This eats up even more of the audience that Masters of the Universe is fighting for which could mean it might be an afterthought much sooner than the studio was hoping for.
Is The Film’s Theatrical Performance The End of The Story?
Masters of the Universe is in an interesting position as a major release with a robust budget because there have been many reports, as long as Amazon MGM Studios have been in the theatrical business, that the box office performance of their films doesn’t tell the whole story. They have the benefit of being backed by a parent corporation that can take potential financial hits on the theatrical home front because they look at these releases as a way to drive more subscribers to Prime Video in the future, as well as sell consumer products through their website.
Should Masters of the Universe not find its major audience theatrically, Amazon MGM Studios seem to feel confident that its release on Prime Video via streaming will increase engagement and build subscribers on the platform. Their strategy seems to view theatrical releases as its very own marketing campaign for its streaming release down the line. While several industry insiders and box office analysts have scoffed at the film’s production costs and marketing spend, the reality is that they can absorb a potential theatrical loss because of the power of the parent company, and that’s something their competitors can’t really do without risking financial peril. Needless to say, it’s possible they had no issue pumping this much money into the film because they looked to long-term potential for their company.
Also a factor is that even if Masters of the Universe stumbles further in theaters, it’s still an IP that has potential to build, even if that future doesn’t involve a theatrical outlook. The potential for franchise building through spin-offs via TV shows is pretty massive for a brand like Masters of the Universe. This doesn’t appear to be lost on Amazon MGM domestic distribution chief, Kevin Wilson, who didn’t give in to the narrative that the film is a box office bomb.
This weekend represents a very solid start for ‘Masters of the Universe,’ and the passionate, multigenerational audience response we’re seeing around the world has been fantastic. Travis Knight and the entire cast and filmmaking team have delivered something truly special, and this opening is exactly the kind of critical first moment that validates our holistic distribution strategy, building awareness and engagement that will carry well beyond the theatrical window.”
The fact of the matter is, on paper, the opening of Masters of the Universe doesn’t scream blockbuster. The domestic opening feels soft, and the global start in 86 markets doesn’t bode well for international grosses bailing the film out theatrically in the long run, but given the different release strategy employed by Amazon MGM Studios, there’s a chance that another journey to Eternia could be in the cards. What’s clear is that the audience that did some out for Masters of the Universe seemed to enjoy it and that could be enough to fuel interest in not giving up on this iteration of the IP just yet.
Masters of the Universe is now playing in theaters nationwide.
Reviews