Everybody loves a Cinderella story, especially Disney.
The remarkable comeback of Elemental at the international box office kept the inspirational family film from becoming one of the four flops currently costing Disney $1 billion. Unfortunately, if you were holding out hope that Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny would see a similar rise from the ashes, today’s the day to put those dreams to rest.
Not only is another film that cost 10 times less to make currently running laps around Indy’s swan song at the box office, but Disney has decided to pump the breaks entirely with a noticeably early digital release date. If only the studio had shown similar restraint before making the sequel to one of the most beloved Halloween movies of all time (you know the one). As it turns out, the film’s producer reveals that the catastrophic failure of the first one almost guaranteed we never would have got the second. If only we had been so lucky.
Meanwhile, the writers’ and actors’ strikes have opened up the doors of transparency to the honest-to-god earnings everyday people in Hollywood make. For many, like the creator of the cult classic Disney animated series Gargoyles, it’s not even enough to buy a half-sized bottle of water.
The creator of Gargoyles shares his measly $0.29 residual check for working on a treasured Star Wars series
Residuals have been at the center of conversations for both the SAG-AFTRA and WGA unions. In this new era of streaming, millions of people can stream a cult classic movie or TV show decades down the line, and the people who worked on the project will likely see nary a nickel. Take, for example, Greg Weisman. Despite helming Gargoyles, which may or may not get the live-action treatment one day, Weisman revealed that even he is not immune to the disparities plaguing his industry. Providing photographic evidence, Weisman shared the $0.29 residual check he earned for working on the entire first season of Star Wars Rebels. No matter that the show is the very foundation upon which Disney Plus’ new series Ahsoka stands, all is fair in streaming and war apparently.
The controversial anti-trafficking movie that’s been beating Indiana Jones 5 to a pulp delivers the final TKO punch
There was never really any hope that Dial of Destiny would become a smash hit after early box-office predictions doomed it for failure, but even the most pessimistic among us held out hope it would make a profit. The unforeseen success of Sound of Freedom starring known QAnon believer Jim Caviezel threw Indy’s stumble into even starker relief after the film remained glued to the top of the box office and earned back its production budget before Disney could even wipe away its tears. This weekend, it officially won the battle with domestic box office figures that exceed Harrison Ford’s swan song by six figures.
Disney accepts its fate, announces digital release for Dial of Destiny
Disney is not dumb. There’s no point keeping a film in theaters if people aren’t going to see it. It makes complete sense that the studio would choose to transition out of theaters and into living rooms after just 60 days. Come Aug. 29, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny will be available on all major digital retailers like Prime Video, Apple TV, and Vudu. Since the announcement comes just 45 days after the film’s theatrical debut, the consensus among those online is understandably “That was quick.” Hey, not every film can be Top Gun: Maverick.
Hocus Pocus 2 producer says the failure of the original almost ended the franchise, but that would have been wishful thinking
Some movies should never squirm out of developmental hell, but somehow Hocus Pocus 2 managed to squeeze through. The 1993 original movie infamously bombed at the box office, but like a good ol’ fashion Cinderella story it went on to become a cult classic and cherished addition to every Halloween season viewing party. It could have just stopped there, and the co-producer and writer of the movie David Kirschner said it almost had: “I thought that was the end of it,” he added. To everyone’s dismay (but mostly mine), Hocus Pocus 2 did end up happening, and somehow the abysmal sequel even scored three Emmy nominations. As we know, Hocus Pocus 3 is happening — someone please assure me it won’t be worse than the sequel. That’s all I’m asking.
