After two months in theaters,The Little Mermaidwill land on digital platforms next week, and when it does, it’ll be on the verge of passing two major milestones at the domestic and global box office. The moviedidn’t have an auspicious openingback in May, and its overseas performance certainly raised some eyebrows, butThe Little Mermaidhas managed to stay afloat for all these weeks, and all said and done, it’s a handy hit for Disney at a time when several big-budget blockbusters have tanked.
After adding a little over $2 million in domestic box office revenuesthis past weekend,The Little Mermaidhas accumulated $293 million stateside, and another $253 million from overseas markets, for a running worldwide haul of $547 million. Witha digital releaselooming, it remains to be seen if the movie has enough gas to push it past the $300 million mark domestically, and the $550 million mark worldwide.
A live-action remake of the classic 1989 cartoon,The Little Mermaiddebuted with $117 million at the domestic box office at the end of May. These numbers were virtually identical toAladdin’s stateside debut in the same frame four years ago. That movie was based on a far more popular piece of intellectual property, and it ultimately played through the summer and ended its theatrical run with more than $300 million stateside and over $1 billion worldwide. By doing so,Aladdinjoined the ranks of previous Disney live-action remakes such asBeauty and the Beast,Alice in WonderlandandThe Lion King.
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But multiple factors could be responsible forThe Little Mermaid’s failure to match those numbers. One, the original IP simply isn’t as popular in overseas markets; two, the reviews have been mixed; and three, family audiences had better alternatives available, such asThe Super Mario Bros. Movie, which has grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide. And unlikeThe Little Mermaid, which reportedly cost $250 million to produce (plus millions more in marketing spends),Super Mariois said to have cost only $100 million.
The Pandemic Caused Costs to Balloon
Inflated budgetshave often been cited as the reason why several movies have been categorized as “under-performers” this year, despite having made major chunk of change at the box office. Costs ballooned during the pandemic, resulting in movies such asTransformers: Rise of the Beasts,The Flash,Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and this week’sMission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part Onescrambling to recover from day one. Each of these movies was produced on reported budgets ranging from $200 million to over $300 million, give or take. WhileThe FlashandDial of Destinyhave already been declared flops, it’s too early to tell howDead Reckoning Part Onewill perform in the long run.
Disney would want to keep a lid on costs going forward, especially after its repeated mockery ofartists fighting for what they deserve. Directed byRob Marshall— who incidentally holds the distinction of having helmed the most expensive movie ever made at the time of its release,Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides—The Little Mermaidstars newcomerHalle Baileyin the central role, andJonah Hauer-Kingas Price Eric. You can watch our interview with the young stars here, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
