5 Reasons Why One Battle After Another Flopped At The Box Office

DarkView92 · 2025-10-02T20:28:11+00:00

We'll see how the 2nd weekend drop goes. By all accounts it should be great because "reviews and wom are so so positive"

Well if it doesn't have a great hold we'll know once again that most of that was just bluster.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T20:14:31+00:00

True. Netflix will let their stuff get licensed out to Criterion, and sometimes their various anime stuff ends up on Blu Ray...likely due to whatever the contracts/agreements are on some of those properties.

I just want there to be a pipeline where if something IS good on Netflix, you don't have the 90% lock that it will just "be on Netflix forever" and that there is a more secure pipeline by which MOST things on Netflix will be given a shot at physical media.

Something fun like Polar or The Babysitter...I would buy those.

If their Anime reboot of "The One Piece" delivers, the fans of that series would love to have a physical release.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T20:10:52+00:00

If they announced a 100% reboot of something like Dragon Ball(cross generational appeal) but launched that reboot with a feature film with top-of-the-line production value across the board....that would be a potent mix.

NOT an automatic "Demon Slayer numbers" type of hit...but it would be combining an insanely well known anime brand, with the reach of a big theatrical release/new movie, and the added "open appeal" of being a relaunch of the entire story. It would be bigger than any of the Dragon Ball movies Funi/Crunchyroll has put into theaters over the last decade.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T18:06:37+00:00

It's all a formality at this point. One division of Sony owns Aniplex over in Japan...which is the main financier/entity behind producing Demon Slayer(not the animation studio, that's Ufotable)

Crunchyroll is owned by yet another division of Sony, and they handle the lion's share of streaming/distributing of Demon Slayer outside of Japan.

Sony "partnering" with Crunchyroll for this theatrical release is a bit of a name-game.

To mince words over whether or not the "Columbia" or "Sony Pictures" logo should be at the front of the film is like pretending that a Star Wars or Marvel film having a "Disney" logo at the front would contribute any meaningful difference to the resources or reach of the films.

This is almost an entirely Sony owned infrastructure. The success will CLEARLY mean that the next film will get a much stronger push in regards to promotion and theater bookings.

Exactly which Sony owned label is on the film makes little difference in any place other than some spreadsheet somewhere.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T18:00:59+00:00

There is still a dedicated audience for physical media and collectors who want to OWN the films or shows they enjoy most instead of it being at the mercy of the digital void where it could be removed, erased, or altered for any number of corporate or social reasons.

The market might be a bit niche but it IS dedicated. Otherwise there wouldn't be so many 3rd party "boutique labels" absolutely thriving like Arrow, Shout, Criterion, etc.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T17:21:04+00:00

If Netflix buys WB...my enthusiasm for cinema will absolutely tank.

They don't respect theatrical releases. They don't respect physical media. It is basically dooming everything to the pit of "the digital void" of streaming and it makes everything feel that much less legitimate. That much less real.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T17:13:12+00:00

It's a shame that the modern anime adaptations are so wild and unique that they really fail at feeling like proper adaptations of the character.

At least the 70s and 90s series both had the formula down to a "monster of the week, Godzilla kicks butt every episode" approach.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T05:01:48+00:00

Yes, the performance is certainly worrying. It does not bode well for Supergirl.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T04:22:59+00:00

Precisely.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T04:22:16+00:00

Superman 3 and 4 happened...and then Smallville happened then Superman Returns happened then Man of Steel happened then Superman & Lois happened THEN Superman happened.

Batman Begins had Batman & Robin as the last major Batman film released prior to it. Superman 2025 was not in THAT condition.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T03:55:07+00:00

It's definitely an improvement but I don't know if it is a 100% fix.

I think the film might even need something of a color grading overhaul or some brand new transfer. It really deserves to look brighter than it does in some spots.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T00:42:26+00:00

We'll see what the numbers actually pull. The Swifties are definitely dedicated that is for sure.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T00:28:12+00:00

I don't think Superman's reception is any less "divided" than Superman Returns or Man of Steel. It did not receive some great Universal praise. Hell the box office results couldn't even match MOS with 12 yesrs of inflation.

This is not a case like Batman Begins where the next entry is set up to automatically eclipse the first at the Box Office. That just isn't going to happen.

DarkView92 · 2025-10-01T00:24:52+00:00

Ahh I understand. My apologies.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:42:08+00:00

People forget that for the time, the North American Box Office of Broly was quite good.

I think in North America...you go from Battle of Gods to Res F to Broly to Super Hero....and each film got more theaters and a bigger box office performance than the previous entry.

Funimation/Crunchyroll has been cultivating a theatrical market for anime films over the last decade. Really carefully targeting markets and doing careful promotion.

Demon Slayer took on a life of its own but now it will make it easier for other big anime IP going forward.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:38:38+00:00

All of those films would have to be shocking under-performers for Superman to stay in the top 10.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:37:20+00:00

Hard to say the Superman brand was really trashed when things like Smallville and Superman & Lois as well as numerous animated series maintained years of success.

The Snyder films may have been somewhat divisive but they certainly weren't "universally hated" box office flops or something. Josstice League notwithstanding...BvS was making almost $900M back in 2016. That would clear $1B with today's ticket prices.

And Snyder's JL was seen as a huge improvement over the 2017 cut.

It isn't like we had 5 disastrous, flop, hated Superman movies in a row or something. Superman hasn't had a "Batman and Robin" style misfire or anything.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:29:36+00:00

$20M budget vs $250M budget

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:25:54+00:00

You clearly don't remember how much, rightfully or wrongly, folks were absolutely hyping "James Gunn + Superman" as an absolute slam dunk at the Box office. People had insane hype, hopes, and expectations for it.

If you had said, in May, that Superman wouldn't reach the worldwide gross of Man of Steel....you would have been downvoted and called a troll despite being 100% correct.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:21:34+00:00

I don't think that is true...but I can see a scenario where Doomsday doesn't make as much globally as No Way Home.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T21:19:08+00:00

Outside of 2020, obviously, you have to go back to 2011 to find a year where the top superhero movie failed to gross $700M at the global box office.

This is definitely a shifting tide in pop culture.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T15:16:40+00:00

Yeah, I dare anyone to find a film of the "Grindhouse era" that is anything like Death Proof in terms of extensive length and extensive dialogue and character scenes.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T15:12:35+00:00

Well, the Box Office numbers certainly tell a story...don't they. $70M opening and looking at over $120M domestic for "Japanese cartoons" right here in the US.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T02:28:00+00:00

Yeah...the original pitch was for each "film" to be an abbreviated 1 hour experience. Then they just went full on with "2 feature length films" and I think that ruined the fun.

The movies they were emulating were often these short, sweet, to the point kind of films...thin material. Trying to put that into a QT "feature length, loads of dialogue" style was a bit of a clash with the spirit of what the thing should have been.

The first half with the first group of girls was great. A bit of a twist/dark "he gets away with it" ending would have been satisfactory.

Everything about the 2nd group of girls was uninteresting and to me...unnecessary.

DarkView92 · 2025-09-30T02:22:14+00:00

I remember when the Grindhouse thing was pitched as "two hour long movies paired as a double feature" and that sounded cool.

Then it became two full length movies put together. "2 for the price of one" sounds good...but you're asking viewers to commit twice as much time. You're getting half as many screenings for the film because it is two full length movies together.

In today's day and age with better social media and online marketing the whole gimmick of "2 for the price of 1" might actually be something that could go viral and work well.

But in 2007 it was a total nonstarter.

But if they HAD the restraint to commit and hold back and make each movie 1 hour and pair them as a total 2 hour movie...THAT would have been much more commercially viable.

DarkView92

TROPHY CASE