As of today, Brad Bird's Tomorrowland has earned $170M worldwide. That may not sound too bad for the futuristic adventure film starring George Clooney, but when one considers the high level of talent across the board, the expensive $190M production budget, not to mention another $150M for marketing...well, it's simply not enough. And now THR has run the numbers on how much Disney stands to lose, and it's enough to make Scrooge McDuck choke.
Disney could lose between $120M-$140M when all is said and done. If the words "box office dud" and "Disney" are starting to sound like a broken record, that's because they've had more than a few flops in recent years. Of course there was John Carter which cost them around $200M (!!!), and then there was the high profile bomb that was The Lone Ranger. And like with both of those failed projects, the ripple effects are far reaching. We've already seen Disney take the axe to Tron 3 because of their fear over another risky gamble. A source within Disney explains why they took a chance on Tomorrowland to begin with...
"When a guy like [Brad Bird] comes to you with an original idea, and [George] Clooney is part of the package, you'll take the swing."
Can't really argue with that, but the film was hamstrung by a super-secretive marketing campaign that kept audiences at a distance. There was no clear idea of what the film was about, and when the negative reviews rolled in people stayed away. So what does all this mean in the short term? It means Brad Bird will now head over to The Incredibles 2, which is bound to be a hit. It may also means Disney will rely more on live-action remakes of their animated classics, plus their Marvel and Star Wars lines.
