Movies that would have made money with a different release date

[levcore]

Any good examples of movies that were arguably just released at the wrong time/ given a bad release date? As a result the movies flopped/ lost money.

I do wonder with Matrix Resurrections and Kings Man being released at the same time and so close to the Spidey juggernaut that it seems almost like the studio is throwing their money away.

Any examples from previous years of this?

[CyberpunkCentral]

Not sure. But I will say Disney's Fox movies have been underperforming lately during this pandemic. Which sucks because 20th Century Studios, under Disney, have been doing pretty well, quality-wise anyway. But they don't draw that non-cinem... I mean... superhero crowed.

[MassiveMovieBuff]

John Carpenter's The Thing. I've always felt if it had been released during the Halloween season instead of attempting it as a summer blockbuster, especially against E.T., it would've fared better. Financially and critically.

[steve_dave]

Originally Posted by levcore

Any good examples of movies that were arguably just released at the wrong time/ given a bad release date? As a result the movies flopped/ lost money.

I do wonder with Matrix Resurrections and Kings Man being released at the same time and so close to the Spidey juggernaut that it seems almost like the studio is throwing their money away.

Any examples from previous years of this?

The Matrix Resurrections and The King’s Man are fine. Warner even has TMR up on HBO Max right now. The bigger issue is the evolving pandemic that has chased away a sizable demographic: older audiences who want an old-fashioned night out.

It’ll take time, more so than expected, to make cinema going a fun and worry free outing again. Families are going back for cartoons and many couples are going back for superheroes. But Spider-Man alone can’t make back the money lost over two years.

[Jay H.]

Hellboy II: The Golden Army opened one week before The Dark Knight. It had a good opening weekend, and then dropped massively on the following weekend.

[Foggy]

The New Mutants probably would have done alright if it stuck to it’s original release date.

[Warm Gun]

Disney is dumb if they think Princess and the Frog not doing that well (against the most successful movie of all time, Avatar) was a reason to drop 2D animation. If only they had waited until 2010.

[DR Herbert West]

Alien: Covenant would've made more with an October release.

[D00mM4r1n3]

Sorcerer (1977) - opening amidst Star Wars was fatal.

[ImBlu_DaBaDee]

The Rescuers Down Under - opened against Home Alone
Last Action Hero - opened against Jurassic Park

[Joey9775]

Originally Posted by DR Herbert West

Alien: Covenant would've made more with an October release.

and if it had been good.

[DR Herbert West]

Originally Posted by Joey9775

and if it had been good.

It was for some of us.

[Brayden96]

Solo: A Star Wars Story should have released in December.

[dkelly26666]

"The Thing" opened in the spring, and should have been a Fall release.

"Casualties of War" opened in mid-summer, amid all the big blockbusters like "Batman" and "Indiana Jones". Should have been a Fall release.

"New York, New York" and "Sorcerer" opened against "Star Wars". "Sorcerer" should have opened in the Fall, and "New York, New York" should have opened in December (AND the studio shouldn't have recut it; the Director's Cut from many years later is much better).

[Monterey Jack]

Originally Posted by Jay H.

Hellboy II: The Golden Army opened one week before The Dark Knight. It had a good opening weekend, and then dropped massively on the following weekend.

Not to mention The X-Files: I Want To Believe, opening the week after The Dark Knight and getting mowed down. Plus, releasing a spooky, snowy horror movie smack-dab in the middle of summer -- and one that was a big-screen continuation of a TV series that had stopped running six years earlier -- didn't help. If that had opened in late September or early October, it would have done a little better...although being a good movie might have helped.

[Gizz]

Star Trek: Nemesis going up against Die Another Day, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. While I like Star Trek: Nemesis very much I like it more then the other films there was no way it could compete against them.

[RossyG]

Licence to Kill might have done a bit better had it not been competing with Lethal Weapon 2 and Batman.

[Samus Aran]

Sometimes counterprogramming can be successful. Phenomenon was a big hit despite coming out the same day as Independence Day.

David Hasselhoff's pay-per-view musical comeback happening the same day as the OJ Simpson chase, on the other hand, did not work out for the Hoff.

[jess1581]

Originally Posted by Brayden96

Solo: A Star Wars Story should have released in December.

Yes, all of this.

[Jay H.]

Originally Posted by Samus Aran

Sometimes counterprogramming can be successful. Phenomenon was a big hit despite coming out the same day as Independence Day.

What's even stranger is when two movies aimed at the same demographic are released on the same day, and they both are huge successes. For example, Ghostbusters and Gremlins.