If someone were to tell you that the single most commercially successful director in the history of cinema, who also happens to be one of the all-time greats, was helming a $140 million fantasy epic based on a beloved book by a famed author of children’s literature, then you’d bet your house on box office success. And yet, The BFG went down in flames in theaters.
Steven Spielberg tackling Roald Dahl sounds about as nailed-on for success as you can imagine, especially when the filmmaker was using cutting-edge CGI technology to not just bring the terrifying giants of the title to life – but allow acclaimed actor Mark Rylance the chance to imbue the title character with heart, warmth, humor, and pathos.
Reviews were about as stellar as you’d expect from Spielberg diving headlong into the world of wide-eyed sentimentality once again, but the commercial returns were the stuff of nightmares. The BFG shocked insiders, analysts, and a great deal of the bearded legend’s fans by failing to even reach $200 million globally, with Disney losing an estimated $100 million once marketing and distribution costs had been factored in.
It’s not often a Spielberg picture flops, and it’s even more rare for one to do so in such spectacular fashion, but there simply didn’t seem to be much interest in The BFG at all. Six years on, though, and the heartwarming adventure has been charming a brand new set of fans on-demand.
As per FlixPatrol, the multi-time Academy Award winner’s unexpected catastrophe has become one of the top-viewed titles on the iTunes global charts, and staying power on the small screen will have to do as its long-lasting legacy.
Published: Oct 18, 2022 11:14 am