Why wasn't Disney's "Wish" the kind that comes true? Let's just say there are a few reasons.
Simply put, the House of Mouse can't seem to catch a break in 2023.
"What is wrong with me today!?"
The Ariana DeBose and Chris Pine-led flick was released on November 22,
boasting a budget of around $200 million. Unfortunately, it missed the mark domestically,
only managing to capture around $30 million over the long holiday weekend. Meanwhile,
the film's global success also looks to be faltering,
with its current and total box-office projections sitting just under $50 million.
While these numbers aren't the worst Disney has seen in recent months,
they're still an unwelcome sight, especially considering the company used to knock it out
of the park with their November releases once upon a time. In 2017, "Coco" captured
over $800 million worldwide while equipped with a similar budget as "Wish." And the year after that,
"Ralph Breaks the Internet" nabbed over $500 million against its $175 million budget.
There's still time for "Wish" to possibly develop some legs and inch closer toward
profit territory. However, these initial reports aren't exactly inspiring. So,
what's causing Disney's latest animated adventure to flounder?
The 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, which began on July 14th, came to an end on November 9,
just two weeks before "Wish" was set to release. This meant that the film's cast could not
publicize the film during a good chunk of its promotional window. In the age of social media,
where big-name celebrities boast millions of followers, "Wish" lost out on months of easy
advertising due to its actors being unable to consistently hype the film.
While the film's execs definitely tried to capitalize on the conclusion of the
SAG-AFTRA strike by pushing Chris Pine out for a few interviews before the movie's release,
this was likely too little too late to develop a strong awareness for the animated musical.
"Desperate times call for desperate measures!"
Beyond the problem of stilted marketing, "Wish" was not met with positive reviews
upon its release, especially from critics. While audiences applauded the film on Rotten Tomatoes,
critics gave "Wish" a rotten score; at the time of this video,
the movie is sitting at 50%. Over on IMDb, "Wish" currently has a 5.9. Meanwhile,
many prominent publications and sites have reacted scathingly toward the film.
For instance, Vulture wrote that Disney's latest animated adventure "fails on every
level." The Guardian agreed and blasted the film as a, quote, "Disney marketing exercise
disguised as a fairytale." Meanwhile, Looper's own Audrey Fox gave the film a 4 out of 10,
citing that the movie's soundtrack was hit-or-miss and noted that its plot struggled greatly with
trying to coherently combine modern and traditional storytelling. Fox wrote:
"'Wish' tries to split the difference between classic and modern, and fails
on both fronts. How much better would the film have done if they
really committed to the vintage vibe? The world may never know."
This isn't Disney's first fumble in 2023. You may recall that many of the company's hottest
live-action properties have also failed to make a worthwhile financial splash. At the
beginning of the year, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" released to mediocre
reviews and greatly underperformed at the box office, especially for a Marvel movie.
"Holy s—! That guy looks like broccoli."
During the summer, "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" became a dramatic box office bomb
after raking in less than $400 million against its whopping $300 million budget. Currently,
another MCU feature, "The Marvels," is also drowning at the box office.
Overall, this type of track record is not one that inspires fans to spend
their holidays and weekends traveling to the theater to watch a Disney flick.
The reasons for the film's poor performance don't end there. Upon its release,
"Wish" was immediately in competition with some other heavy-hitters. "Napoleon," which
stars Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix, was released on the same day as "Wish."
"I found the crown of France in a gutter…and placed it atop my own head."
Granted, an R-rated historical epic about France's greatest conqueror isn't exactly in the same
category as a family-friendly, animated magical musical, but it still crowds the box office,
especially when it boasts big names like Phoenix and legendary director Ridley Scott.
More importantly, "Wish" came out while "The Hunger Games:
The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" continues to make noise. With a budget of $100 million,
the film is already close to scoring double that, and its run is not even close to being over.
Not all hope is lost for "Wish", despite all that's been said so far. Remember how things
went for Disney's summer feature, "Elemental"? While it struggled greatly in its opening debut,
it went on to net almost $500 million at the box office against a hefty budget of $200 million.
So there's still a chance for "Wish" to make something big happen down
the financial stretch. However, as things stand,
it seems the Disney musical has too many concrete variables stacked against it.