Thursday, October 10, 2024

“Mary Poppins Returns” is Disney’s Third Big Live Action Disaster for 2018, With Just $31 Mil Opening Weekend

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It’s a good thing Disney bought all those other companies like LucasFilm, Marvel,  and Pixar.

Back in the actual Mouse House, it hasn’t been such a happy year for the studio’s live action films.

“Mary Poppins Returns” made just $31 million this weekend in its opening. What happened? I — and a lot of other people– thought this Rob Marshall reboot would be a smash. Marshall made a terrific film, too. But audiences have not clamored to see it. Emily Blunt and co. are wonderful. Maybe once the Christmas holiday sets in…

Disney has already had a bad time marketing these live action films. That’s not good news considering the next ones are “Aladdin” (which looks dreadful) and “The Lion King.”

This year the studio struck out with “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” and “A Wrinkle in Time.” The movies went awry in a big way during production, and the arrived to jeers.

You could almost put “Solo: A Star Wars Story” in the same category. It was from LucasFilm, but it was also an original drama with actual actors, not animated ones. Disney could not put it over, or overcome advance bad buzz that was unwarranted. It’s very similar to the “Mary Poppins” situation.

Emily Blunt has a lot of awards interest coming up– maybe that will help, too. She is delightful as Mary. Don’t miss her!

Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News, where he created the Fox411 column. His movie reviews are carried by Rotten Tomatoes, and he is a member of both the movie and TV branches of the Critics Choice Awards. His articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. He is also the writer and co-producer of "Only the Strong Survive," a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals, directed by DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus.

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