The genre known in the business as “sword-and-sandal” has taken a hit in recent years, and the death blow may be the disgusting performance this past weekend of Paramount’s reboot of “Ben-Hur”, a $100 million-budgeted epic that only took in an estimated $11.4 million over the opening weekend.
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Warner Brothers’ superhero movie “Suicide Squad” continue to reign in the top position for third consecutive week. With $85.8 million through four weeks, Bad Moms and fellow R-rated comedy Sausage Party may well become the last films of the summer to make over $100 million domestic. Enter Ben-Hur, Paramount’s latest remake.
The film reportedly cost $A131 million to make but raked in just $A15 million on the weekend in the states. But the movie’s paltry showing this weekend could discourage Hollywood from greenlighting future big-budget takes on Biblical-era material.
“Suicide Squad” continued to lead the way at North American theaters over the weekend, while the big-budget “Ben-Hur” limped to a sixth-place finish in its debut, according to final figures released Monday. Although Paramount got help from MGM, which put up 80 percent of the financing, the studio is still going to take a massive loss on this one.
The film’s updated action sequences, including the climactic chariot race, and an uplifting faith-based message seem to have worked for folks who actually went to see the picture.
Box Office Mojo doesn’t break down the 1959 film’s opening weekend ticket sales, but the film collected $848.68 million (adjusted for 2016 inflation) throughout its lifetime and ranks as the 14th most successful film based on this metric.
It was first made as a silent film in 1907, and again in 1925.
“Ben-Hur” narrowly beat holdover “Pete’s Dragon” to place No. 5.
The new film stars Jack Huston as Judah Ben-Hur, alongside Morgan Freeman and Rodrigo Santoro, who plays Jesus Christ.
“Kubo and the Two Strings”, an animated feature about a boy seeking his destiny in mystical Japan, grossed $12.6 million.
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Also at the specialty box office, Natalie Portman’s directorial debut, A Tale of Love and Darkness, finally opened at the specialty box office more than a year after premiering at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.
