Most kids had half school days yesterday. They should have piled into theaters to see Disney’s new animated film, “Strange World.”
But they did not come in droves. Instead, “Strange World” made just $800,000 in previews. This does not augur well for Thanksgiving weekend. At that rate, “Strange World” could turn out to Disney’s lowest grossing animated film — family film — in a long, long time.
Just for context: “Lightyear,” considered a Disney bomb earlier this year, had a $5 million preview night and went on to earn $118 million domestically (and $100 million internationally).
A lot of potential audience may be thinking they’ll wait and see “Strange World” on Disney Plus. If that”s the case, theaters are in bigger trouble than anyone thought.
Already smaller films with Oscar potential are heading early to streaming. The much praised “The Banshees of Inisherin” from Disney’s Searchlight Films is going to HBO Max before December is out. This is unheard of. In the past, a movie like “Banshees” would continue playing in a limited number of theaters until awards nominations kicked in and word of mouth helped build interest.
It’s indeed a Strange World.
