Amazon/MGM seem to be burning a lot of money these days on their movies, with what appears to be very little return on investment.
Say what you will about this studio, but one thing is undeniable: they don’t skimp on budgets. They have money to burn. Between the reported $200M price tag for “Masters of the Universe,” Michael B. Jordan’s $100M+ “Thomas Crown Affair,” spending $75M on a documentary (“Melania’”), Chad Stahelski’s upcoming “Highlander” at $180M, and “Project Hail Mary” costing $150M+, they’ve made it clear they’re willing to open their wallets in a big way.
The wild thing is that none of the titles mentioned were sure things to begin with, nor are they tried-and-true IP. In fact, the only title that might make a decent profit—emphasis on might—is “Project Hail Mary.”
Their most recent big spend is “Crime 101,” a crime thriller hitting theaters nationwide tomorrow, which is projected to earn $12M over the 4-day holiday weekend. The problem is that, according to Matt Belloni, the film—starring Chris Hemsworth—cost $93 million to make ($108.8M gross, minus $15.8M in incentives) and will likely not make its money back.
If you see the film, you’ll start to wonder where all that money went on screen—how could it possibly cost $100M to produce? Sure, you have Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, and Barry Keoghan, but even accounting for their salaries, that budget feels far higher than it should be.
So what exactly is going on over at Amazon/MGM Studios? There are plenty of theories out there, but it’s also worth remembering that they’re running a streaming platform that needs a steady flow of content. It would be silly to assume they expected every one of these releases to turn a theatrical profit.
“Crime 101” is set to hit 3,100+ screens this weekend. The reviews have been decent enough, and it’s refreshing to see a studio spend this much money on a non-IP original—but what Amazon’s long game truly is remains anybody’s guess.