The opening weekend for Warner Bros’ DC’s $200M The Flash has raised questions surrounding the impact of a major motion picture studio opening a movie with limited press availability from its cast. With a 3-day gross of around $60M, the movie is below the $70M-$75M range the studio was expecting. While the studio is still hoping for a $70M 4-day gross, it remains to be seen whether the Juneteenth holiday will deliver as no movie has grossed north of $10M on this holiday before. The movie’s cast was largely unavailable for press, and this may have contributed to the lower performance.
The Impact of Limited Press Availability
The limited availability of the cast for press interviews has been a major concern surrounding The Flash. Already, San Diego Comic-Con has been affected by the unavailability of TV series creators. Ezra Miller, the movie’s main star, was not available for The Flash’s press tour, making his first appearance at the premiere, which was limited to a red carpet photocall. A majority of the cast was also unavailable for 360-degree press. Late-night shows going dark during the WGA Strike also compounded Warner’s problems, and this may have contributed to the lower gross.
The reason many cast members did not sit down with the press is that they did not want to answer uncomfortable questions about Miller’s legal troubles. The Flash also did not have an extensive promotional campaign, unlike most tentpole movies. This campaign is essential in cutting through the noise of summer and achieving big numbers.
The Reception of The Flash
The Flash has also received mixed reviews from moviegoers, with a B CinemaScore and 77% on Comscore/Screen Engine PostTrak exits with a 59% recommend. The fact that The Flash is predominantly male and not attracting as many women as Aquaman and Wonder Woman is also slowing down its progress.
The movie’s focus on the multi-universe and the return of Michael Keaton’s Batman may be confusing to the average moviegoer, who may not understand that The Flash is a movie about a deeper universe DC character. Going deep into the universe of a superhero movie carries the risk of less than $100M-plus openings.
Marketing Strategies for The Flash
Despite the challenges, Warner Bros has been praised for running the best campaign possible with fun trailers that largely focused on its superhero, The Flash, and Michael Keaton’s Batman. Warners spent big on trailers, with iSpot data showing that Warner Bros spent $31.3M on spots for the movie, which pulled in 1.07 billion impressions. This is more than Disney spent on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Elemental, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
The Flash played best in the South Central and West, and both IMAX and PLFs are driving 42% of the movie’s gross. Despite the limited press availability, Sasha Calle, who plays Supergirl, did do press in Miami and Texas.
Other Movies at the Box Office
Apart from The Flash, Disney/Pixar’s Elemental has also struggled at the box office, with an estimated $30M 3-day gross after a Friday around $11.6M. The movie has received negative reviews and was not expected to perform well. The Blackening, a horror comedy directed by Tim Story, grossed $2.5M yesterday, with an expected $6M-$8M over three days.
However, despite the lower performance of The Flash and Elemental, the holdovers, including Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, are propelling a near $200M weekend, which is good news for the exhibition business.
The limited press availability of the cast for The Flash has raised concerns about whether this strategy is effective in promoting a major motion picture. The mixed reception of The Flash and the movie’s focus on the multi-universe may have contributed to its lower performance. Despite the challenges, Warner Bros has run a successful marketing campaign for the movie, and other movies at the box office, including The Blackening and Elemental, have also struggled to perform well.