Is ‘Mission: Impossible 7’ a flop? Five-day opening projection lowered to $78M domestically
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: Tom Cruise's most recent action film, 'Mission: Impossible–Dead Reckoning Part One', is facing challenges in achieving its objectives. Despite high expectations, the movie has not performed as well as anticipated at the box office, with projections indicating it might only earn $78 million domestically during its initial five-day opening, according to Variety. The previous projection indicated the five-day opening would earn $90 million.
Adding to the setbacks, the 61-year-old action star had to suspend production on Part Two due to the ongoing actors' strike. The unexpected halt has undoubtedly added to the film's difficulties in moving forward smoothly.
Is history repeating itself?
While Variety reported disappointing ticket sales, the movie's 96% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 95% audience score showcase its strong reception among those who have seen it. Adding to the star-studded cast are newcomers Hayley Atwell, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Cary Elwes, and Rob Delaney, who bring their share of action to the film.
It's worth noting that 'Mission Impossible: Fallout' faced a similar situation in 2018, ultimately earning $60 million in its first three days. With a substantial budget of approximately $290 million, 'Dead Reckoning Part One' has a considerable challenge ahead to recover costs. However, the film has demonstrated global appeal, pulling in $82.1 million across 70 international territories in its initial three days of release, indicating the potential for steady box office success as word of mouth spreads and more moviegoers make their way to the theaters.
In the latest installment, 'Mission Impossible-Dead Reckoning Part One', Tom Cruise returned as the seasoned spy Ethan Hunt for the seventh time, reuniting with Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, and Rebecca Ferguson for another thrilling adventure. This time, their mission revolves around locating a dangerous weapon to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.
Unexpected flops from the expected ones
In addition to 'Dead Reckoning Part One', another franchise film, 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny', has also fallen short of expectations at the box office. Domestically, the movie has managed to earn $136,659,865, while its international performance has been better, bringing in an additional $127,150,765 since its release on May 18, according to Box Office Mojo. It only earned $83.8 million in the first five days according to Deadline.
Despite its potential to become one of the top ten domestic releases of the year, 'Dial of Destiny' still lags far behind in recuperating its massive production budget. The fifth installment in the series, where Harrison Ford reprised his iconic role as the adventurous archaeologist, had a budget of $300 million. The film's financial struggle reflects the challenging climate for big-budget franchise movies, where even well-established series can face difficulties in covering their production costs.