Disney (and others) at the Box Office - Current State of Affairs

[Disney Irish]

The conversation never happens if you are convinced everything is evil…

There’s always bugs bunny and six flags where the evil hate mongers don’t go…

Not everyone or everything is evil, no one made such a claim or even tried to convey it.

But to ignore that there is a section of the population that for whatever reason is upset with Disney, and not due to quality, is sticking your head in the sand. And its more than just "4 guys in their mom's basement" as you like to joke. Not everything comes down to just quality issues.

Hopefully 2024 ends with Disney on a positive note and people will be ready to have real conversations about this topic.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Not everyone or everything is evil, no one made such a claim or even tried to convey it.

But to ignore that there is a section of the population that for whatever reason is upset with Disney, and not due to quality, is sticking your head in the sand. And its more than just "4 guys in their mom's basement" as you like to joke. Not everything comes down to just quality issues.

Hopefully 2024 ends with Disney on a positive note and people will be ready to have real conversations about this topic.

I understand that feeling…

I just don’t believe you can by default equate failure with sabotage due to bigotry.

There is some of that…but it’s fringe.

What this seems to be is disappointment that the “progress” cannot be accelerated. But if it could be decreed they call it “completion”…not progress which implies time.

But the little mermaid, haunted mansion and marvels were not “progress”…it’s just crap from a company with terrible management. Sometimes a cake is just a cake.

 

[Disney Irish]

I understand that feeling…

I just don’t believe you can by default equate failure with sabotage due to bigotry.

There is some of that…but it’s fringe.

What this seems to be is disappointment that the “progress” cannot be accelerated. But if it could be decreed they call it “completion”…not progress which implies time.

But the little mermaid, haunted mansion and marvels were not “progress”…it’s just crap from a company with terrible management. Sometimes a cake is just a cake.

Its not as fringe as you think, you're discounting how main stream its really become over the last decade. I can't say more otherwise that will get into a topic that we're not allowed to talk about on this site.

As for the rest, I'm not disappointed at all in how things have progressed. Things take time and I understand that. Do I wish some things would progress faster, of course. But that is not how things in society necessarily move, they can, but not always.

I will disagree with you on what you call "crap". If some such as yourself didn't like it, I'm cool with that as that is just a matter of personal taste. Do I consider it was 100% top tier quality work, no. But I'm sorry I don't consider it "crap" either.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Ok, so if there is no need to defend, then there is no need to bash things either as you do. If the market/audience decides we got nothing to talk about. These forums are going to get very quiet soon enough. So I expect no longer seeing you post here anymore then since this was your idea.

There’s no point in engaging. He doesn’t argue in good faith.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Yeah, I'm curious too because I follow the MCU a decent bit and have never seen that Feige "stepped back" or anything of the sort. The closest I've seen was that he was stretched thin with so many projects and had to delegate more, but he ultimately was still in charge of everything that has been made in the MCU and had some degree of control of it all.

Going forward, the idea is that they will try to decrease the amount of content so he will spend more time with each project. but that's far different from the idea that he left and is returning.

Delegating more and not being in control of every step of the development process as he previously had been while working on outside projects meets my definition of “stepping back.” Iger’s big solution to Marvel’s “problem” was to return Feige to direct oversight of every step.

 

[erasure fan1]

Its not as fringe as you think, you're discounting how main stream its really become over the last decade.

I wonder what would happen if you went around asking random people, how many movies have you not seen because overlord dvd said Disney is trash? I'm guessing you could go days or weeks before anyone even knows who he is.

We are so entrenched in Disney we see EVERYTHING good or bad related to Disney on our feeds. No one, I repeat no one, thinks that there aren't people going after Disney. The issue comes down to weather you think it has caused Disney to lose at the box office. Or that these grifters are just a vocal minority of blow hards who really don't have the reach some think.

Neither side will ever agree with the other. That's just the way it will always be.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Its not as fringe as you think, you're discounting how main stream its really become over the last decade. I can't say more otherwise that will get into a topic that we're not allowed to talk about on this site.

As for the rest, I'm not disappointed at all in how things have progressed. Things take time and I understand that. Do I wish some things would progress faster, of course. But that is not how things in society necessarily move, they can, but not always.

I will disagree with you on what you call "crap". If some such as yourself didn't like it, I'm cool with that as that is just a matter of personal taste. Do I consider it was 100% top tier quality work, no. But I'm sorry I don't consider it "crap" either.

I think you’re taking the bait and mistaking a very LOUD reactionary minority for 50%

It is not close to 50%…there is an apathetic 50% of everyone who largely stays quiet and doesn’t live their lives like buffoons

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

There’s no point in engaging. He doesn’t argue in good faith.

If you mean I’ve run out of tolerance for veiled accusations of bigotry from strangers who know nothing about their targets…

…then I will gladly own that

 

[_caleb]

How do you guys think general audiences decide which movies to see in the theater and which ones to skip?

 

[ThemeParkTraveller]

The Numbers has an estimate on overseas box office for Inside Out 2, which has already opened in all countries except two; Japan waits until August 1st, and Finland waits until July 17th

It actually only opened in 60% of markets overseas. Besides Japan, other major markets it hasn't opened in include France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, and China.

Internationally, the film only opened in 60 percent of the marketplace this weekend. It broke records across Latin America, where it secured the second-biggest opening of all time behind Marvel and Disney’s Avengers: Endgame and opened to $30.2 million in Mexico alone.

Box Office: ‘Inside Out 2’ Delivers Historic $155M U.S. Opening and $295M Globally in Huge Pixar Comeback

The sequel boasts the second-biggest animated opening of all time in North America and the biggest ever worldwide when comparing like-for-like markets.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[bwr827]

How do you guys think general audiences decide which movies to see in the theater and which ones to skip?

Social factors, eg not wanting to miss out on the water cooler. Fear of spoilers. Shared interest with friends or family.

Spectacle. Eg Avatar.

Quality. Eagerness to be moved, or have thoughts provoked, or to simply enjoy.

If any of these are high enough, it pushes us to the theater.

 

[Casper Gutman]

I wonder what would happen if you went around asking random people, how many movies have you not seen because overlord dvd said Disney is trash? I'm guessing you could go days or weeks before anyone even knows who he is.

We are so entrenched in Disney we see EVERYTHING good or bad related to Disney on our feeds. No one, I repeat no one, thinks that there aren't people going after Disney. The issue comes down to weather you think it has caused Disney to lose at the box office. Or that these grifters are just a vocal minority of blow hards who really don't have the reach some think.

Neither side will ever agree with the other. That's just the way it will always be.

Yeah, it's not like the most prominent governor in America waged a highly publicized war on Disney, attacking them as a threat to all that is good and decent. And it's not like the governor was backed by by the most widely read writers on Facebook, the most widely viewed news networks, the most widely watched YouTube channels. And its not like that attack was part of an assault on educational establishments that has dominated American discourse for years.

Look, disliking Disney's recent output doesn't associate you with the disgusting folks pushing the hate campaign. Disliking that output is completely reasonable. But denying the existence of a campaign that has been one of the major media stories of the last several years because you find its existence inconvenient makes you, at best, disingenuous.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

Yeah, it's not like the most prominent governor in America waged a highly publicized war on Disney, attacking them as a threat to all that is good and decent. And it's not like the governor was backed by by the most widely read writers on Facebook, the most widely viewed news networks, the most widely watched YouTube channels. And its not like that attack was part of an assault on educational establishments that has dominated American discourse for years.

Look, disliking Disney's recent output doesn't associate you with the disgusting folks pushing the hate campaign. Disliking that output is completely reasonable. But denying the existence of a campaign that has been one of the major media stories of the last several years because you find its existence inconvenient makes you, at best, disingenuous.

 

[TP2000]

It actually only opened in 60% of markets overseas. Besides Japan, other major markets it hasn't opened in include France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, and China.

Oh? That's fascinating. And now when I go look at The Numbers site at 11pm Mountain time, it shows that all those countries you listed, and more, haven't yet opened for Inside Out 2. But yesterday, it listed almost all of them, except notably Japan and Finland, as opening on June 14th. Who knew?

Probably just a glitch in The Numbers reporting on Sunday evening estimates from abroad. Or something.

Inside Out 2 (2024) - Financial Information

Financial analysis of Inside Out 2 (2024) including budget, domestic and international box office gross, DVD and Blu-ray sales reports, total earnings and profitability.

www.the-numbers.com

 

[Disney Irish]

I wonder what would happen if you went around asking random people, how many movies have you not seen because overlord dvd said Disney is trash? I'm guessing you could go days or weeks before anyone even knows who he is.

We are so entrenched in Disney we see EVERYTHING good or bad related to Disney on our feeds. No one, I repeat no one, thinks that there aren't people going after Disney. The issue comes down to weather you think it has caused Disney to lose at the box office. Or that these grifters are just a vocal minority of blow hards who really don't have the reach some think.

Neither side will ever agree with the other. That's just the way it will always be.

Not everything comes down to some clickbait tuber that very few heard of, you really need to get past that.

There are other ways that influence many in the general population, and they are grifters in my opinion just a different kind. And yes I think they have an influence over the box office not just for Disney but Hollywood in general. And I'm not talking about some political candidate, though I think that has an influence yet smaller. I'm talking about Facebook and Instagram with over 2.9 Billion (with a B) users worldwide. The algorithms of both will feed whatever not only you view but everything that is adjacent causing a feedback loop. All it takes is viewing one negative article on Disney and now you're inundated with everything "Disney bad", and that has an influence on people and what movies they go see. If you don't think it does you're naive.

There have been studies done after the 2020 election that showed over 33% (now over 50% last Pew Research I checked) of Americans get their news and information from Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms. For conversation sake we'll take that 33% and call it an even third, that is 3 in 10 people that get influenced by the feedback loop of the algorithm, that is over 100M people. That is a large enough percentage that will sway box office results for good or bad.

So yes I think it has an effect, a very large effect, on not just Disney but all of Hollywood. Why do you think all of Hollywood now has a larger social media footprint. Its to try and get a foothold into that feedback loop and control the narrative.

 

[Disney Irish]

I think you’re taking the bait and mistaking a very LOUD reactionary minority for 50%

It is not close to 50%…there is an apathetic 50% of everyone who largely stays quiet and doesn’t live their lives like buffoons

Nope, not talking about just a vocal minority, though they have an affect too and cause a feedback loop unto themselves.

 

[Disney Irish]

Yeah, it's not like the most prominent governor in America waged a highly publicized war on Disney, attacking them as a threat to all that is good and decent. And it's not like the governor was backed by by the most widely read writers on Facebook, the most widely viewed news networks, the most widely watched YouTube channels. And its not like that attack was part of an assault on educational establishments that has dominated American discourse for years.

Look, disliking Disney's recent output doesn't associate you with the disgusting folks pushing the hate campaign. Disliking that output is completely reasonable. But denying the existence of a campaign that has been one of the major media stories of the last several years because you find its existence inconvenient makes you, at best, disingenuous.

I think that is part of it, but not as large as we like to think. I think the social media effect has a larger impact on what sways the conversation and the box office, and yes that can also be influenced by whatever candidate one follows.

 

[Disney Irish]

How do you guys think general audiences decide which movies to see in the theater and which ones to skip?

Social media feeds.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

I think that is part of it, but not as large as we like to think. I think the social media effect has a larger impact on what sways the conversation and the box office, and yes that can also be influenced by whatever candidate one follows.

OTOH, California’s Gov is not attacking DL, and from what I understand, DL is doing fine.

A lot of FL locals are influenced by the Gov, who spent a lot of time not only actively attacking WDW, but pushing the lies that WDW and TDO are harming children. How is Uni doing vs WDW? Uni is not being attacked.

In addition to all of that, a lot of people are actively avoiding FL for that specific reason, including some right here on this board.

 

[Casper Gutman]

I think that is part of it, but not as large as we like to think. I think the social media effect has a larger impact on what sways the conversation and the box office, and yes that can also be influenced by whatever candidate one follows.

Unfortunately, it's all very much the same thing. There is an incredibly dispiriting totalizing impulse in modern discourse that means that politics is linked to every single element of society - film, music, technology, friendship, etc. This impulse is not unique to the current moment - it waxes and wanes throughout history - but it is currently at a high point that most of us haven't seen in our lifetime. It's a tremendously complex phenomenon and this isn't the place to try and pick it apart. The impulse often works surreptitiously - most people don't make constant political judgements about every piece of media, but they act largely unthinkingly on unexamined tribal instincts, a vague sense of which pieces of culture are "for them" or "against them." As I've said before, it's a very bad thing that we can make a fairly accurate guess as to how someone votes based on what they think about Star Wars.

All of this is quite upsetting if we think about it, so there is a very natural impulse to deny it, ignore it, downplay it, pretend that things are the way they've always been and that it's impossible they could ever change. That totalizing element means that when someone acknowledges one uncomfortable reality - say, that there is a network of bad faith actors effectively attacking largely harmless media products in pursuit of wealth and power - it can begin to force questions about seemingly much more vital issues. The overwhelming urge to ignore anything that might occasion such questions, however, is a major reason we no longer have even a rudimentary shared reality to use as the starting point for building the kind of agreements and compromises that let a society function.

In short, dislike Star Wars all you want - I strongly disliked Obi-Wan, loathed Rise of Skywalker, and was disappointed by Mandalorian Season 3 - but base your opinions on the actual media text and don't try to downplay a coordinated hate campaign that is linked to much, much broader issues in modern society.