DC’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom started off its Christmas domestic box office run with a sluggish $4.5 million in Thursday previews, well behind the $9 million earned by the first film. The sequel, reteaming director James Wan and star Jason Momoa, caps a year in which the superhero genre has largely struggled at the box office.
The Warner Bros. tentpole may only swim to $37 million to $43 million in its domestic box office debut over the four-day holiday weekend. That would pale in comparison to 2018’s Aquaman, as well as trail the recent $46.1 million opening of box office debacle The Marvels, from rival Marvel Studios.
Aquaman 2, which faced a troubled road to the big screen, marks an end to this era of DC as new leaders James Gunn and Peter Safran reboot the DC Extended Universe in 2025’s Superman: Legacy. Momoa himself has said he’s not likely to puruse a third Aquaman movie.
In 2018, Aquaman‘s official three-day opening over the Dec. 21-23 weekend was $67.9 million. And through Christmas Day — a Tuesday — its domestic tally was a rousing $105.4 million (that included several million in special sneak peeks the previous weekend). The Warner Bros. and DC movie went on to earn $335.1 million domestically and $1.15 billion globally, the best showing ever for a DCEU title, not adjusted for inflation.
If there’s any consolation, it’s that Aquaman 2 is almost assured of winning what is shaping up to be a sluggish Christmas weekend.
A slew of other films open Friday opposite The Lost Kingdom. Warners has no fewer than three year-end holiday event movies — Aquaman, Wonka, which opened last weekend, and The Color Purple — a daring feat (and never mind that two are musicals).
In yet another test of the appetite for theatrical animated fare, and especially original stories, Illumination and Universal open the holiday animated tentpole Migration on Friday. Tracking suggests the family pic will post a four-day gross of $14 million to $15 million. In November, Disney Animation was skewered when Wish opened to $31.6 million over the five-day Thanksgiving corridor, including $19.7 million for the weekend proper.
Migration earned $1.5 million in previews.
More to come.
Pamela McClintock
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