Blue Beetle, the latest DC superhero movie, has landed with a thud at the domestic box office. The film, which stars Xolo Maridueña as a Mexican-American teenager who gains a powerful alien scarab, opened with a disappointing $25.4 million, the lowest debut for a DC film since Jonah Hex in 2010.
The film also ended the four-week streak of Barbie, the surprise hit of the year that has grossed $567 million in North America and became the highest-grossing film based on a toy property ever. Barbie, which features Margot Robbie as the iconic doll, made $21.5 million in its fifth weekend, dropping only 23% from the previous week.
Blue Beetle faced several challenges, such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Delta variant, the lack of star power, the unfamiliarity of the character, and the mixed reviews from critics and audiences. The film received a 59% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising Maridueña’s performance and the film’s representation of Latino culture, but criticizing its formulaic plot and bland villains.
“Blue Beetle is a landmark film for Latino representation in Hollywood, as it features the first Latino superhero to headline a major studio movie and a predominantly Latino cast and crew,” wrote Rebecca Rubin of Variety. “But it also shows that representation alone is not enough to guarantee success.”
The film also performed poorly overseas, earning only $18 million from 63 markets for a global total of $43 million. The film cost $100 million to produce, not including marketing costs, which means it will likely lose money for Warner Bros.
“Blue Beetle is another example of how difficult it is to launch new superhero franchises in a crowded marketplace,” wrote Scott Mendelson of Forbes. “Blue Beetle is a flop. There’s no sugarcoating it. The DC superhero moviea had one of the worst openings ever for a comic book adaptation,” wrote Gavia Baker-Whitelaw of Daily Dot.
Blue Beetle is the latest in a string of underperforming DC films, such as The Suicide Squad, Shazam: Fury of the Gods, and The Flash, which all had bigger or similar debuts but failed to impress in their theatrical runs. The only exception was Aquaman 2, which made $1.1 billion worldwide earlier this year.
“Blue Beetle is already on track to be another domestic box office flop for DC, continuing a trend that has plagued the franchise for years,” wrote Dalton Cooper of Game Rant.
Despite the poor results, Warner Bros. has not given up on Blue Beetle yet. The studio plans to release the film on HBO Max 45 days after its theatrical debut, hoping to attract more viewers who are reluctant to go to theaters amid the pandemic. The studio also has several other DC projects in the works, such as Black Adam, Batgirl, and Wonder Woman 3.
“Blue Beetle is a fun and fresh take on the superhero genre, with a charismatic lead performance by Xolo Maridueña and a heartfelt story of family and identity,” said the Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus. “But it may be too late for this beetle to fly.”
Relevant articles:
– Box Office: ‘Blue Beetle’ Stumbles With $25 Million Debut, Ends ‘Barbie’s’ Four-Week Streak, Variety, August 20, 2023
– Here What ‘Blue Beetle’ Needs To Gross To Beat The DCEU Box Office Curse, Forbes, August 18, 2023
– People are posting empty ‘Blue Beetle’ screenings to highlight the film’s flop status, Daily Dot, August 17, 2023
– Blue Beetle is Already On Track To Be Another Domestic Box Office Flop For DC, Game Rant, July 26, 2023