TRON reloads to No.1 with disappointing digits for ARES, while Channing's ROOFMAN collapses.
Plus: SIMPSONS 2, THE BEATLES & RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD!
💰 Box Office: TRON 3 underwhelms
Disney’s third attempt to make Tron a viable blockbuster franchise hit a familiar barrier with Tron: Ares, as it only grossed $33M when $50M would have been preferred. It may now be difficult for Ares to match the eventual $409M success of 2010’s Tron: Legacy now, although stranger things have happened if good word of mouth has an impact. Reviews are a little mixed, but audience reaction feels decent/ That said, while this series has a loyal fanbase of middle-aged geeks, the wider public just isn’t enamoured with the idea behind Tron.
The crime comedy Roofman, starring Channing Tatum, had an even worse debut, however, making only $8M. And the biopic Soul on Fire, about a St Louis man who survived full-body burns, limped in at No.5 with a meagre $3M.
🇺🇸 US Box Office
Tron: Ares—$33.5M (NEW)
Roofman—$8M (NEW)
One Battle After Another—$6.6M (week 3)
Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie—$3.32M (week 3)
Soul on Fire—$3M (NEW)
In the UK, Tron: Ares likewise debuted at No.1, so the film has made $60M worldwide and cost $180M to produce. The only other new release was UK comedy-drama I Swear, telling the story of John Davidson, the subject of a famous TV documentary from 1989 called John’s Not Mad, which detailed his battle with Tourette’s syndrome.
🇬🇧 UK Box Office
Tron: Ares—£1.7M (NEW)
One Battle After Another—£1.2M (week 3)
I Swear—£1.1M (NEW)
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale—£456K (week 5)
The Smashing Machine—£353K (week 2)
👀 What’s Watching?
“We’re revisiting a lot of 1990s television at present—my daughter is now old enough to enjoy catching up with the classics. So, entering the final season of Buffy The Vampire Slayer and the ‘Dark Willow’ arc, which is… erm, dark. Also, the Connor arc in the parallel Angel episodes, which I recall getting a bit tedious first-time around. Also excited about embarking on Stargate SG-1 rewatch. We’re just a couple of episodes in and it’s stood the test of time with great dramatic sense and a serious attempt to explain the science stuff to, at least, good Star Trek standards. The recasting of the main characters established in the 1994 movie is masterful and the TV actors quickly make the parts their own.”
🗞️ News: SIMPSONS 2, Saoirse joins The Beatles, more INBETWEENERS, and Shyamalan shakes a Magic 8 Ball…
The Simpsons Movie is finally getting a sequel in 2027, two decades after that movie’s premiere, which was already years late itself considering the long-running animated sitcom reaches a creative peak in the late-1990s. Are you excited?
Saoirse Ronan has reportedly joined Sam Mendes’ upcoming Beatles biopic as Linda McCartney, Paul’s first wife.
British sitcom The Inbetweeners could be coming back, as creators Iain Morris and Damon Beesley are reportedly planning to reunite all the actors for another story. It’s not clear if this will be a TV series following them in early middle-age, or a third movie doing likewise, or a one-off special. It may feel a little awkward if four men in their late-thirties/early-forties are still trying to lose their virginity and talking about “clunge” though…
M. Night Shyamalan’s next project will apparently concern a Magic 8 Ball toy, invented in the 1940s, that famously answers questions you pose to it after shaking it to reveal a cryptic phrase. One assumes his version will be more accurate to a frightening degree. This will be a TV project, his second after Servant on Apple TV, co-created with Brad Falchuck (American Horror Story). The series will be financed by Mattel, the makers of the toy, who scored a big hit recently based on their Barbie doll.
👀 And What
Been Watching?“I had the pleasure of watching Cooper Raiff’s Shithouse (or Freshman Year as it was marketed on Prime Video) for the first time, a disarmingly sensitive and sweet depiction of first-year college blues. I saw shades of myself during this uncertain time in this awkward and lonely protagonist, while the romance at the heart of the film was far more sincere and realistic than I had anticipated. I usually feel like rolling my eyes when movies are described as if they’re akin to a warm hug, but the tender intimacy of this one perforated my veil of cynicism and gripped on tightly.”
🔎 Critical Lens: zombies, a twin, a fighter, an A.I., a writer, and a dog!
Dev Elson analysed Arrow Videos’ new Blu-ray release of The Return of the Living Dead.
enjoyed the new films Twinless and Ballad of a Small Player at the London Film Festival.
Jono Simpson wrestled with The Smashing Machine and revisited ‘90s tech thriller Strange Days for its 30th anniversary.
enjoyed Tron: Ares, with caveats.
Rachel Dvorak was satisfied enough with Netflix mystery The Woman in Cabin 10.
Kris King looked at the unique horror film Good Boy.
pored over Eureka’s new Blu-ray of Hong Kong horror The Island.
👀 What’s Marios Papadoniou Been Watching?
Overcome with pride, a family is exiled, forced to relocate somewhere within the woods where they meet theological contradiction and contention—a fatalistic folkloric horror tale unlike anything I’ve seen, and a strong debut for filmmaker Robert Eggers. The VVitch is historically, folklorically, culturally, and linguistically accurate with adept acting, especially from the adolescent actors; impeccable and varied cinematography; and a tense, silencing ambiance fitting of its devilish nature. I just wished Eggers remained this cinematically tight after the release of The Lighthouse.”