It Could Be a Rough Summer for Hollywood

Movie season is off to a tough start, though there are lots of sequels on the way
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted May 8, 2024 1:48 PM CDT
Summer Blockbuster? Maybe Summer Lackluster
Ryan Gosling in a scene from "The Fall Guy."   (Universal Pictures via AP)

It's not exactly looking like a summer of love when it comes to the big screen. As CNBC reports, Hollywood kicked off its summer movie season last weekend with the Fall Guy—the first time since 2009 a flick from Clan Marvel didn't get the party started. Despite Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt at the helm and more stunts than a WWE match at a political nominating convention, moviegoers didn't exactly line up, giving it a $28.5 million haul. That won't do much to shake analysts' projections of just north of $3 billion in ticket sales this summer—significantly off the typical mark of $4 billion.

There are a couple of factors at play here, including the actors' and writers' strikes leading to a lack of big projects in the pipeline. And Bob Iger of Disney, which runs the Marvel Cinematic Universe, thinks there's a case of superhero fatigue going on. As a result, Disney is taking its foot off the gas a bit with the Marvel movies, though you'll see the first R-rated one, Deadpool and Wolverine, out this summer. All that said, Vanity Fair is pretty amped about some of the summer's offerings rolling out beginning on Memorial Day, noting "we've got popcorn flicks; we've got art house curiosities; we've got sequels, sequels, and sequels." Some highlights:

  • May 9: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
  • May 17: IF
  • May 17: The Strangers: Chapter 1
  • May 24: Furiosa: A Mad Max Story
  • May 24: The Garfield Movie
  • June 7: Bad Boys: Ride or Die
  • June 14: Inside Out 2
  • June 21: The Bikeriders
  • June 28: A Quiet Place: Day One
  • July 3: Despicable Me 4
  • July 19: Twisters
  • July 26: Deadpool and Wolverine
  • August 9: Borderlands
  • August 16: Alien: Romulus
  • August 23: The Crow
(More summer movies stories.)

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