There’s been a lot of talk about this being the year that Apple legitimizes itself as a movie studio. This has been an important last few months for their film division.
Unlike Netflix, they’re actually giving their titles 45-day theatrical rollouts. To attain this legitimacy, they’ve also teamed up with A-list directors and given these ridiculously high budgets.
Variety is now reporting that not only did Apple/Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” cost $200 million to make, but so did Matthew Vaughn’s “Argyle” and Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon.” This means that Apple spent $600 million on just these three movies.
Wait … “Argyle” cost $200 million?! Isn’t Apple dumping this movie in February? Who gives Matthew Vaughn this much money to make a non-IP movie? Clearly, Apple does. It won’t get them any awards but they’re hoping it becomes a hit — which I’m too sure about.
As for “Napoleon,” based on the trailer, the film does look like it cost $200 million. It’s currently tracking to have a domestic opening weekend of around $24 million.
As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t think Apple cares about shelling out this much money — the company makes an average of $1 billion in profits every day. They greenlit ‘Killers’ and ‘Napoleon’ for prestige and awards. 2024 looks like it’ll continue that trend.
Next year, Steve McQueen’s WWII epic “Blitz” will be Apple’s big contender. They’re also producing Scorsese’s potential next film, “The Wager.”