“There’s plenty of great movies that appeared to be a bit of a dud opening weekend, theater attendance was just alright, and the movie really took off and made its money on video.”
The film only cost $45 million to make. They are well on their way to make a profit.
There is much more more money to be made in streaming, video rentals, overseas release and merchandising.
Clint’s movies are almost always profitable, in part because he knows exactly what he’s looking for, and inevitably finishes ahead of schedule and under budget.
There was a Chicago-based actor who appeared in several Eastwood films who used to post of this forum. As I recall, he said once you’ve proved yourself as an actor or technician, you will be invited to audition for future projects, or hired as part of the crew. He also affirmed many of the legends associated with an Eastwood film; among them: Joel Cox, Clint’s longtime editor, had the easiest job in Hollywood. Eastwood rarely films more than three takes per shot, so the editor doesn’t have to spend hours going through dozens of takes to find the right bit of footage.
Also: crew members used to collecting lots of overtime on film sets are always disappointed on an Eastwood production. If it’s a daytime shooting schedule, everything is always wrapped up by five pm, often earlier, and that also helps hold down production costs. Finally, Clint likes actors who can give him exactly what he wants and those who do will be hired again (and again). One famous example: Albert Popwell, who played the wounded bank robber in the original Dirty Harry film, on the receiving end of one of the most famous questions in film, “Do you feel lucky?” Popwell was a fine actor and he appeared in the next four films in the series, graduating to the role of Harry’s partner in Sudden Impact.
Richard Jewell will find its audience and make money. It’s also no accident the press has been trying to chase audiences away, since Eastwood had the courage to go after them.