Posted on 11/11/2019 11:06:24 AM PST by EdnaMode
One week after “Motherless Brooklyn” disappointed the box office, Warner Bros. has yet another flop in the form of “Doctor Sleep.” The Mike Flanagan-directed horror film based on Stephen King’s “The Shining” sequel was tracking for a debut in the $25 million range, but its opening weekend came in well below that mark with a dismal $14 million total. While “Doctor Sleep’s” $50 million production is a saving grace, Deadline reports the film is expected to lose between $20 million and $30 million for Warner Bros.
“Doctor Sleep” now joins “The Goldfinch,” “Gemini Man,” and “Terminator: Dark Fate” as one of the fall’s big studio tentpole flops, but that’s not how King wants it to be remembered.
Amidst headlines over the weekend bringing attention to “Doctor Sleep” bombing at the box office, King took to social media to share a defense of the film. Author Matt Serafini encouraged “Doctor Sleep” admirers to share positive thoughts online to drown out the negativity of the movie’s box office.
“If you liked ‘Doctor Sleep don’t spend the weekend moping over box office,” Serafini wrote. “Talk about the film, what you dug, and inspire others to check it out. Let your championship be meaningful that way. Don’t let everyone’s hard work be immediately reduced to and defined by numbers.” King shared Serafini’s opinion with his own 5.5 million followers, adding, “Agree. It’s a terrific movie. Take a friend and dig the vibe.”
King was originally hesitant to allow Flanagan to direct “Doctor Sleep.” The filmmaker’s pitch was to adapt King’s novel while including some of the iconography made famous in Stanley’s Kubrick’s “The Shining” film adaptation. King has never supported Kubrick’s film, so he was understandably cagey about letting Flanagan recreate Kubrick’s version of settings like the Overlook Hotel. Not only did the two find common ground for the film to move forward, but King has since become a champion of “Doctor Sleep.”
King continued to champion “Doctor Sleep” in the wake of the box office numbers by tweeting, “I mostly write books and hope for the best. Box office numbers aside, Mike Flanagan’s film is excellent. If people choose not to go, that is their choice, but when something is good, I cheer for it.”
“Doctor Sleep” is the year’s third high profile Stephen King film following “Pet Sematary” and “It Chapter Two.” The film is now playing in theaters nationwide.
I am interested to see this one, but first I have to show my wife ‘The Shining’ as she has never seen it. I have it on order from the library, and I found out that there is both the Jack Nicholson movie (which deviated form the book) and a mini-series which I am told follows the book more closely. I am told the Doctor Sleep movie follows better from the book version.
I read his 11.22.63 and saw the made for TV movie. Both were pretty good and I am not a Stephen King fan.
The Stand is my favorite King book.
When I was in high school I had a car and a job and better things to do. So I didn’t read for enjoyment until after I graduated. That led me to go to college. Thankfully.
But once I started reading I started reading voraciously, to make up for lost time I guess.
However the first book I put down, halfway through because I couldn’t take anymore, was Stephen Kings “It”. And literally tossed it in the garbage.
His magnum opus “The Dark Tower” didn’t live up to the box office hype.
Maybe they’ll remake Maximum Overdrive next. It truly hit “so bad it’s good” territory.
Doug, dig, and vibe. 3 words the millennials will Groove on.
Boy, did someone mess up their marketing. That's the impression I got from the previews.
Maximum Overdrive was awesome...
I did enjoy the soundtrack.
Those were both good flicks.
I wonder the percentages of people go to the movies anymore? We haven’t been in years and there are plenty of other types of this kind of entertainment that are close to free or even free.
Streaming competes with the movie theaters and the resolution of a home theater system very effectively competes with anything that you might see or hear at a theater.
The only disadvantage is that you might not be the first person on your block to see a movie. But at $10 - $15 per ticket plus the risk of the movie being terrible, I can wait.
While the pro-America Midway is a box office hit.
From the previews I have seen, it looked like “Dr Sleep” was parts of most of the other movies he’s had. This equals, I have seen it before.
Every Emilio Estevez movie is awesome.
I think teens and young adults who still live at home are today's primary theater-goers, along with dads of small children. That's why there's so many comic book films.
Today's increasingly affordable massive 4K home theater systems have far eclipsed the visual and audio quality of the cinema. For many, it's preferable to view at home.
With the exception of the IT movies, every film based on one of King’s books has flopped or underperformed recently. :D
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Get woke, go broke!
I actually like “Christine”.
It’s hard to top a movie about a WWII naval victory on Veteran’s Day weekend.
You really think Stephen King is going broke? You think one box office dud movie hurts his net worth? Look at the filmography. Lots of movies bases on his works have tanked over the last 40 years. He's still worth $400 million.
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