“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is gunning for the top spot on box office charts.
The fifth and final adventure to star Harrison Ford as the legendary, globe-trotting explorer is targeting at least $65 million from 4,500 North American theaters in its opening weekend. The latest Indy installment is also debuting day-and-date at the international box office, where it’s aiming to add $80 million for a global start of $145 million to $150 million.
Those ticket sales are decent in the current moviegoing environment, especially for the fourth sequel to a decades-old property that’s aimed at older audiences. But Disney spent a mind-boggling $295 million to bring the action-adventure to life. That’s not including marketing costs, such as a no-expense-spared premiere and afterparty at the Cannes Film Festival where much champagne was tippled. Even in the best circumstances, it’ll take a heroic feat — and a lot of nostalgia from long-time fans of the series — for “Indiana Jones 5” to turn a profit in its theatrical run.
Though the film will get a boost on Tuesday’s July 4th holiday, it doesn’t have a ton of time to own the big screen before Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” (July 12) and Christopher Nolan’s atomic bomb drama “Oppenheimer” (July 21) come along to share the marquee.
“Dial of Destiny” is the first “Indiana Jones” movie to hit theaters since 2008’s “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which opened to $100 million in May. Steven Spielberg directed that film, which cost $185 million and ended its theatrical run with $317 million in North America and $790 million globally. It’s the franchise’s highest-grossing film, not adjusted for inflation. But most fans thought the movie itself was dreary.
Spielberg passed the reins of the franchise to “Logan” filmmaker James Mangold, who directed “Dial of Destiny” and wisely jettisoned Shia LaBeouf’s Mutt Williams character. Critics have been mixed on the newest action-adventure, which follows Indiana Jones as he races against time to retrieve a legendary artifact that holds the power to change the course of history. (A not-insignificant portion of the budget was spent on digitally de-aging the 80-year-old Ford, who appears in some of the film as a younger version of himself.) He’s accompanied by his goddaughter (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) as they face off against Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen), a former Nazi who works for NASA.
Though “Indiana Jones 5” will claim the No. 1 spot, it’s not this weekend’s only new nationwide release. “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken,” an animated adventure from Universal and DreamWorks, is expected to collect a dreary $8 million to $9 million. The film cost $70 million.
“To All the Boys” star Lana Condor leads the voice cast of “Ruby Gillman,” which centers on a shy teenager who discovers she’s part of a legendary royal lineage of mythical sea creatures.
“Ruby Gillman” has stacked competition among family films. It’s looking to finish the weekend behind Pixar’s “Elemental” and Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” which will vie for second place.
“Across the Spider-Verse,” now in its fifth weekend of release, is expected to bring in another $13 million. So far, the animated comic book sequel has generated $319 million in North America and $563 million globally.
Meanwhile, “Elemental” looks to drop 36% from last weekend, putting ticket sales at $12 million between Friday and Sunday. After a rocky start, the film has grossed $68 million at the domestic box office and $124 million worldwide.
In limited release, “Every Body,” a documentary from Oscar nominee Julie Cohen, lands in 257 theaters. Focus is distributing the movie in the U.S. with Universal Pictures International handling overseas distribution. The R-rated film spotlights the lives of intersex people and tells the story of three individuals who were born with physical sex characteristics that do not fit typical definitions of male or female.
“I hope that people come out of the theater wanting to learn more,” Cohen, who co-directed the Academy Award nominated “RBG,” says about “Every Body.” “There’s a lot to know about this situation.”