Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny Digs Into Disappointing $130 Million Opening at the Global Box Office

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny has opened to a disappointing $130 million (about Rs. 1,064 crore) at the global box office in its opening weekend. Marking lead Harrison Ford’s last time donning the iconic hat and whip, the film heavily underperformed when taking its brand into consideration, which has historically earned Disney significant profits. The film dug up $70 million (about Rs. 573 crore) from regions outside the US and Canada, which was to be expected given how poorly it fared critically at the Cannes Film Festival this year. Even headlines musing about Ford’s five-minute standing ovation didn’t come off as a strong draw for audiences. Indiana Jones 5 earned the remaining $60 million (about Rs. 491 crore) in the US and Canada, and is tracking to build on its box office performance during the July 4 holiday in the US.

The figures look pretty bad once you take the budget into account as well, which is reported to be close to $300 million (about Rs. 2,456 crore), excluding the marketing campaign that secured a film premiere spot at the Cannes Film Festival. As per Indiewire, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny might be looking at a total investment of $450 million (about Rs. 3,684 crore). It’s highly unlikely to see a positive turnaround for the film, given Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is right around the corner — releasing July 12 — followed by two of the biggest blockbusters this year, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Indiana Jones 5 has a one-week free runway to make up for its losses, after which, I’m expecting it to head to VOD and streaming platforms. The latter is, of course, after the minimum 45-day theatrical window Disney has implemented for its movies before their arrival on Disney+.

In comparison, both Barbie and Oppenheimer are budgeted at roughly $100 million (about Rs. 819 crore) each, while Mission: Impossible is set at $290 million (about Rs. 2,374 crore). Indiana Jones 5’s failure to dominate comes as a bit of a shock, given the veteran 80-year-old Ford’s star power was a driving force for its marketing. As per Variety, the UK was the biggest market for the film, earning $8.9 million (about Rs. 73 crore) in ticket sales. Coming in second is France with $5.9 million (about Rs. 48 crore), followed by Japan adding $4.7 million (about Rs. 38 crore) to the pot. Korea and Germany rounded out the top five list by adding $4.1 million (about Rs. 34 crore) apiece.

Meanwhile, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Review) is dominating the box office — this time, setting another milestone by making $607.3 million (about Rs. 4,971 crore) globally, becoming Sony Pictures Animation’s highest-grossing film. While a good majority of the ticket sale profits were from the US and Canada, the film has fared well in other regions as well, collecting a total of $267.4 million (about Rs. 2,189 crore). The film catapulted Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) on a trip to the multiverse, to partake in a mission that goes south when he turns against Miguel O’Hara/ Spider-Man 2099’s (Oscar Isaac) team of Spider-People. A sequel called Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse is planned for release on March 29, 2024.

Both Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse are currently playing in theatres worldwide.