Warner Bros. is facing significant challenges at the moment. After the disappointing sales of its action prequel, Furiosa, over the summer, the studio is now dealing with the massive letdown of Joker: Folie á Deux. This much-anticipated sequel, which boasted a hefty $190 million budget, could only muster an underwhelming $37.8 million in its opening weekend. Just a month prior, projections had suggested it might surpass $100 million upon release.
What went wrong? The answer is straightforward: If a film fails to impress and audiences aren’t clamoring for it, they just won’t show up. Now, with such a lackluster premiere, Warner Bros. is left wondering how they can attract more viewers in the upcoming weeks.
Experts predict that Joker: Folie á Deux may experience a drop of at least 70% in its second weekend, mirroring the fate of last year’s poorly performing comic book film, The Marvels, which opened to $46 million and plummeted by 78% in its following weekend, earning just $10.1 million. For Joker 2, this could mean ticket sales dwindling to between $8 million and $10 million. That’s a brutal forecast.
To compound the situation, the musical led by Joaquin Phoenix is likely to be overtaken by Terrifier 3, a horror sequel with a production budget of only around $5 million. This smaller film is forecasted to earn at least $10 million, with optimistic estimates suggesting it could reach $15 million by the next Sunday. It’s quite a contrast for an indie horror film to surpass a major studio release in its second weekend.
There’s a certain irony in a film featuring a character who dons clown makeup to rally a group of misfits being outperformed by a horror film centered on Art the Clown, a figure appealing to the very audience that the original Joker captured back in 2019. Let’s just hope Terrifier 4 doesn’t attempt any musical segments featuring Art performing atop someone’s stomach!
Joker: Folie á Deux and Terrifier 3 are currently in theaters. For a better cinematic experience, you might want to rewatch The Dark Knight on Max instead.