‘Forgotten Island’ Bombs With $13M Opening, $80M Budget, Despite Great Reviews

DreamWorks' "Forgotten Island" currently holds a stellar 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. That puts it among the studio's best-reviewed animated releases, and it's hard to imagine it missing a Best Animated Feature nomination if it weren’t for it bombing at the box office this weekend.

The casting is unique. “Forgotten Island” boasts one of the deepest benches of Filipino talent ever assembled for a major Hollywood feature. Lea Salonga, Broadway's "Miss Saigon" star and the singing voice of both Mulan and Jasmine, voices Manang. Rounding out the cast are Manny Jacinto, Dolly de Leon ("Triangle of Sadness"), Jo Koy, Ronny Chieng, Amielynn Abellera, Dave Franco and Jenny Slate.

Now, here’s the problem: "Forgotten Island" just opened to $13M domestic and $20.6M worldwide. That's one of the five worst openings in DreamWorks Animation history, against an $80M budget. It didn't even hit its modest $15–17M tracking. Rave audience reactions (93% positive on PostTrak, 97% on RT's Popcornmeter) didn't help either. Nobody showed up.

Can it recover? October's only animated competition is Laika's PG-13 "Wildwood," so there's a chance it finds some legs via word of mouth

The bigger picture, however, is grim. Original animation has struggled mightily this decade. "Elio," "Wish," "Strange World," "Ruby Gillman": all originals, all bombs. Even this year's "Hoppers," at $390M, pales next to the "Inside Out"/"Coco" era. Families will pay for "Toy Story 5."

The current original animated champ of the decade is still Pixar's "Elemental," which topped out at about $496M worldwide in 2023. Compare that to the previous decade, which had "Frozen" ($1.28B), "Zootopia" ($1.02B), "The Secret Life of Pets" ($875M), "Inside Out" ($859M), "Coco" ($823M), "Sing" ($639M) and "Brave" ($539M).

Family audiences won't gamble four tickets on something they've never heard of. And without new originals, there are no new franchises. Studios ucan't keep remaking "How to Train Your Dragon" forever. Next test: Pixar's "Gatto" in spring 2027. Fingers crossed.

‘Forgotten Island’ Bombs With $13M Opening, $80M Budget, Despite Great Reviews

"Forgotten Island" just opened to $13M domestic and $20.6M worldwide. That's one of the five worst openings in DreamWorks Animation history, against an $80M budget.

Shawn Levy Turned Down Tom Cruise's ‘Days of Thunder 2’ to Make ‘Ghost Rider’ with Ryan Gosling

Remember when Tom Cruise reportedly visited the set of Shawn Levy and Ryan Gosling's "Star Wars: Starfighter"? Turns out it wasn't just a friendly pit stop.

Nancy Meyers' ‘Paris Paramount' Shoot Is Reportedly a “Nightmare,” With a Budget Ballooning Way Past $100M

Meyers has always been known as a perfectionist, but perfectionism and a toxic set are two different things, and Warner Bros. is now paying for a rom-com that may end up as the most expensive in history.

Andrew Schulz Joins Joseph Kosinski's ‘Miami Vice '85’ Alongside Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler

The “Miami Vice '85” cast keeps growing. Andrew Schulz has boarded Joseph Kosinski's big-screen reboot for Universal, per Deadline, joining leads Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler.

Richard Linklater Gives ‘Merrily We Roll Along’ Filming and Release Update: “See You in 2040”

The project, shot intermittently, began production in 2019, allowing the actors to age naturally in real time. This same approach earned Linklater acclaim for “Boyhood” in 2014.

August 19, 2019

3-Hour ‘Midsommar' Director's Cut Screened in NYC

This year’s 12th edition of the Scary Movies festival at Film at Lincoln Center premiered Ari Aster’s extended version of “Midsommar” this past Saturday.

CONFIRMED: Sadie Soverall Exits Brady Corbet's ‘The Origin of the World' Mid-Shoot, Lily McInerny Steps In Lead Role

Sadie Soverall was just let go after briefly filming on Corbet's new film — no official reason given. She had the lead role. Corbet has replaced her, last minute, with Lily McInerny.

Ron Howard’s ‘Alone at Dawn’ Starring Adam Driver and Anne Hathaway Sets Christmas 2027 Release

This is the adaptation of the nonfiction book by Dan Schilling and Lori Longfritz. It wrapped production in February and has been in post-production ever since. The film test-screened a few months ago.

Jeremy Saulnier’s Next Film Retitled to ‘Slayground,’ Current Runtime is 2.5 Hours, Plot Details

Jeremy Saulnier’s mysterious A24 project, formerly “October,” still has no release date. You’d think, given that it has been in post-production for almost a year now.

Jemima Kirke and Alexi Wasser to Star in Woody Allen's Next Film

A few months ago, Deadline reported that Woody Allen's next film, set in Madrid and carrying a $14M budget, will be "largely English-language" and feature a "high-profile cast."

Fritz Lang’s ‘M’ Tops the Best Films of the 1930s, According to 100+ Critics

We’ve gone through the decades. The ‘40s ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s, ‘2000s, and ‘2010s. — all revisited, argued over. Now, here are the results for the best films of the 1930s.

Critics Poll: ‘Citizen Kane' Named Best Film of the 1940s

The results are in, and according to critics, this decade filled with cinematic riches did not have a better film than Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane.” Nobody should be surprised by this result. “Citizen Kane” changed cinema forever.

Critics Poll: ‘Vertigo’ Named Best Film of the 1950s, Over 120 Participants

It was a closer race than anticipated, but Alfred Hitchcock’s “Vertigo” has topped our best of the ’50s poll, besting Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen’s “Singin’ in the Rain” by just two votes.

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