Marvel's (NYSE: MVL) movie The Incredible Hulk was incredibly disappointing (to me at least). No, I'm not talking about the quality of the movie. I didn't actually see it. But Boxofficemojo is reporting that it has grossed an estimated $54.5 million at domestic theaters over the weekend. While that was good enough for first place, it wasn't good enough for shareholders. The movie bombed, plain and simple.
Why am I being so hard on a number-one movie? It's not so difficult to understand. The awful Hulk movie that was released back in 2003 grossed $62.1 million in its opening weekend. There's no way to spin this. We've had five years of inflation between that terrible flick and this new iteration. Simply put, it should have grossed at least $65/$70 million, especially on the heels of Iron Man. I'm a shareholder of Marvel, and I don't like the fact that the success of Marvel's first movie of the summer didn't synergize a little better with the angry green guy.
Focusing on the positive, Marvel was able to beat DreamWorks Animation (NYSE: DWA) and its Kung Fu Panda project. The cartoon took in about $34 million and came in second. M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening, distributed by News Corp. (NYSE: NWS), did okay by coming in third with a gross of around $30 million. Some analysts thought that the horror flick would do a little bit less than that number. Personally, I thought it should have come in second place considering Shyamalan's name, but I guess people aren't as excited as they used to be about his exercises in cinematic twists (the fact that it was rated R also inhibited its blockbuster potential). Sony's (NYSE: SNE) Adam Sandler comedy You Don't Mess with the Zohan did in fact get messed with yet again, dropping two spots to fourth place, grossing about $16 million. I've heard bad reviews on this one. Viacom (NYSE: VIA) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull were daring enough for fifth place. Everyone's favorite archaeologist has now breached the $275 million level. Great to see a favorite character of mine from the past doing so well.
I just don't get it. The Incredible Hulk should have done better. Apparently moviegoers didn't believe that the reboot would truly be better than the 2003 film. Marvel should still make money from the current release, and I assume it has a good chance of besting its predecessor after its final run (that film ultimately grossed $132 million), but I was hoping for a lot more money.
Disclosure: I own Marvel; positions can change at any time.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-16-2008 @ 10:34AM
Darin said...
It bombed because of lack of disposable income...people just don't have the money they used to go to the movies anymore...you will see a huge hit on the movie industry if oil doesn't go down....It has to be a blockbuster movie like Iron Man or Indy Jones to draw the huge amounts of money used to see about a year ago...sign of the times and signs of the U.S, slipping into a depression
6-16-2008 @ 10:42AM
Michael Goldstein said...
If you're not willing to see the movie (or buy the product) and invest $12, you probably should not own or tout the company.
6-16-2008 @ 11:40AM
Sheldon L said...
Word of mouth on the current Hulk will be better than the first. Check the drop-off next week. This one is very good.
6-16-2008 @ 1:37PM
Firefly said...
How about you see the movie before you talk about it bombing and being a disappointment. From what I know, it surpassed the initial projections; albeit not to the scale of Iron Man, though Iron Man didn't have the baggage and obstacles that Hulk does.
I agree with the other reviewer, the word of mouth on this one will likely propel it passed the 132 million mark of its predecessor - just like the word of mouth that brought a screeching halt to Ang Lee's film five years ago.
I enjoyed Hulk, and was happy to see it was stylistically similar to Iron Man. Marvel is officially two for two, and developing a nice signature with its work.
Hopefully, at some point you'll take time away from writing about a movie being a disappointment and actually go see it.
6-16-2008 @ 7:07PM
Jake said...
A bomb for shareholders? hardly. This weekend we had competition from not only movies but also in the NBA Finals, The U.S Open, and Fathers day. Although lower than many hoped after Iron Mans staggering numbers this is a success to shareholders. The movie will be profitable and most importantly...we got The Hulk back! There is a good buzz going on, many will still see the movie, DVD sales will be huge, and having people interested in the hulk again creates another income stream via video games, tv commercials, clothing, toys, etcetera. The HULK IS BACK and he's adding value to our shares daily
6-16-2008 @ 8:12PM
Doc Savage said...
You are incorrect. The movie made $54 million on Friday and Saturday only. Did you not notice this when they released the "weekend" numbers on Sunday!?
Hulk smashed the weekend and beat out Kung Fu Panda and The Happenng quite surprisingly...not bad on Fathers Day summer weekend. BTW the only other movie that has ever put up better numbers for fridy and saturday on father;s day was ....guess...another marvel movie...Fantastic four II: rise of the silver surfer. Relook things over my friend after the final numbers come in. MVL is doing far better then expected and geez; Iron Man alone is going to bring in a BILLION Dollar francise by the end of 2009! Hulk is just more cherry on a fantastic stock story sundae of the decade!
7-09-2008 @ 10:45AM
lou said...
IF the Happening or The Panda movies were NOT released on the same day as Hulk, it would have done HUGE NUMBERS....NUFF SAID!!!!
8-16-2008 @ 6:49AM
kseniya said...
ıt good
but ı still dont find came my brother wont this came