Jul 18, 2022

- "Pose of Fury" falls short of box office smash next to "Minions" blockbuster

NBCUniversal/Illumination's Minions: while Paramount/Nickelodeon's Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank failed to impress.

Paws of Fury grossed only an estimated $6.25 million in its opening weekend, despite playing in 3,475 theaters nationwide. Although it played in more theaters than Top Gun or Elvis, both films grossed more than this poorly received animated film. Audiences were a bit kinder, depending on where you look. The film currently has a 66% favorable score on Posttrak, a 69% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, and an A- on CinemaScore.

Perhaps the most unfavorable result of Paws of Fury's debut was the opening weekend box office of Paramount's animated Paw Patrol ($13.1 million) and Clifford ($16.6 million), which opened the same day on the Paramount+ streaming platform. ($16.6 million).

Meanwhile, "Minions: The Rise of Gru," in its third week of release, took second place overall with an estimated $26 million weekend. Only Disney Marvel's "Thor: Love and Thunder" grossed more, but that film suffered a dismal 68% drop in its second week. The Rising of the Groot has now grossed $262.5 million in the U.S. and $532.7 million worldwide.

With "Minions" still going strong, the latest Marvel film in the early stages of its theatrical run, and big-budget films like "Top Gun" and "Elvis" dividing audiences, why did Paramount decide to release "Paws of Fury" this week?

Paramount apparently did not expect "Rising of the Groot" to do as well at the box office as it did in its first three weeks. In fact, even the most optimistic expert predictions for the latest "Minions" film are well below the glowing numbers achieved by Illumination's latest film.

Other animated films are also making money at the box office in the U.S.: Disney-Pixar's "Lightyear" continues to languish after its theatrical release. Disney-Pixar's "Lightyear" continues to languish after its theatrical release, ranking 10th at the weekend box office with $1.3 million. Its total box office to date is $115.4M, the worst pace for a non-pandemic theatrical release in Pixar history.

Just below Lightyear sits indie darling Marcel the Shell With Shoes On, which grossed $575,370 ($3,761 per screen) in just 153 theaters, as A24 continues to bring this hybrid stop-motion feature film to the U.S., where it has grossed $3,761 per screen. As it continues its slow release, this box office run will likely rise through strong word-of-mouth. Marcel has received nearly unanimous praise from critics and audiences alike.

Netflix's The Sea Beast, which was not released theatrically, topped the streamer's list of top 10 English-language films worldwide during the week of July 4-10. Viewers watched 33.5 million hours of Chis William's marine adventure film, making it the most successful first week of animated feature films released on the service this year. Sea Beasts" is currently in the Netflix Top 10 in 92 countries and #1 in 18 countries. One can't help but wonder what would have happened had the film been released theatrically.