Monday, May 25, 2026

Someone Call 911: Box Office Champ Director Michael Bay Faces Lowest Opening Ever with “Ambulance”

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Sirens are wailing all over Hollywood this morning.

Michael Bay, producer and director of blockbusters, is facing his worst opening weekend ever with “Ambulance.”

The Jake Gyllenhaal starring feature made just $2.5 million on Friday. Added to previews, “Ambulance” made $3.2 million for its opening “night.” Another five or six million for Saturday and Sunday means the Ambulance needs to call 911 itself and report a catastrophe.

Bay is known for producing or directing blockbusters, not critically acclaimed films. The biggest numbers in his portfolio are for “Transformers” movies. The last movie he directed, “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi,” opened to just $16.9 million, a persona low. “Ambulance” will now take its place  on his all time low list.

Granted, the budget for “Ambulance” was about $200 million less than his usual extravaganzas. “Ambulance” probably cost around $50 mil. It was also less poorly reviewed than most of his films, with critics saying basically, it wasn’t as bad as the others. The Rotten Tomatoes score is 69%, which for Bay is the equivalent of an A.

Meanwhile, you’ll be happy to know that “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” made $26 million for Paramount over Thurs-Fri. Hedgehogs never go out of style, especially the sonic kind!

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009 and previously edited Fame magazine and wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. is 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. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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