How Much Money Was Ben Platt Being Paid In Dear Evan Hansen
The failure of Universal's Dear Evan Hansen at the domestic box office with a $seven.5M opening didn't really surprise anyone afterward the moving-picture show was torn apart by critics postal service its TIFF world premiere. But the latest misfire by a feature adaptation of a Broadway musical raises enough of questions well-nigh the sub-genre's fate at the box office.
Should Honey Evan Hansen, in its express entreatment, accept had its debut on streaming instead of in theaters? Or become mean solar day-and-date theatrical and streaming?
Later on all, NBCUniversal's streaming service Peacock desperately needs the product, and so much and so that they decided to make the sequel to their blockbuster horror reboot, Halloween Kills,a day-and-appointment attraction on Oct. fifteen (that picture show came on tracking Thursday to a $45M-$50M opening, which has box office analysts perplexed how such a gross is possible when it's also available on the streaming service's premium subscription tier).
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Just in regards to Dear Evan Hansen, what remains shocking is how a critically dearest and popular stage musical, which made over $226M in its roughly 4 years on Broadway, becomes simply dismissed on the big screen.
Look, Universal wasn't doing anything experimental here with Dear Evan Hansen.This wasn't Gasper Noe or Ari Aster's upside-down version of Honey Evan Hansen.Similar to Universal'due south Les Miserables and Mamma Mia!franchise (which all combined grossed $1.45B at the WW box function), the studio made the most faithful take on Dear Evan Hansenequally they could, tapping Stephen Chbosky, a filmmaker known for emotional young adult dramas, and casting the project up with such awards-lauded actresses like Amy Addams and Julianne Moore, rising Booksmartstar Kaitlyn Dever, and staying truthful to the musical'due south roots past keeping Ben Platt, who originated and wowed in the title role with his low-to-loftier emotional singing.
It was a logical greenlight, given the musical's momentum at the fourth dimension, for Uni to win the bid on the package. Furthermore, Honey Evan Hansencame from producer Marc Platt, who the studio has had a longstanding relationship with (he'south besides Ben's father).
Then, why in God'southward name did this musical go sideways? Why would movie critics shun a piece of art which was faithfully translated from the stage?
The almost immediate answers about Dear Evan Hansen's downfall is the simple fact that in a prolonged pandemic, those returning to the cinemas are looking for escapism, not a near 2 1/2 hour cry, especially a ballad-filled drama. However, fifty-fifty pre-pandemic, a musical with a protagonist who isn't likable or sympathetic is difficult to sell. Non to mention, a movie that touches on suicide must be perfect. Also, putting this motion picture at Christmas arguably may non have made much of a difference. The picture show would have still had the same inherent problems. I think Uni knew this, which is why they didn't screen the film in advance for critics ahead of TIFF.
Another pandemic conundrum for Uni is that Broadway musicals cater to older audiences, and we know that demographic is having a very difficult fourth dimension turning out at the cinema during the pandemic. Dear Evan Hansenwas geared at young adults, non young adults and parents, then unfortunately, Uni loses the latter core audience for the film. The under-35 demo repped 71% of Dear Evan Hansen'due south audience.
WhileHoney Evan Hansen fans who showed up gave information technology an A- CinemaScore, sometimes a musical, such as Les Mis, has to provide fans of the Broadway musical something more than than a redux of what they've already seen on stage.
Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway performing Les Mis was something no fan of that musical had ever seen, and was well worth the movie ticket price, not to mention Tom Hooper'due south technique of recording the soundtrack alive on set, versus pre-recorded, took the musical to another level. And, right there, that'due south probable the nuanced secret to success with Broadway fare on the big screen: Give everyone a little something more that they oasis't seen, and also make certain they transport the audience home singing. I would say that Dear Evan Hansen songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul had more hummable, jazzy tunes in the original La La Landwith "Another Day of Lord's day" and "Someone in the Oversupply" to transport united states of america home with a skip in our step.
Additionally, what works in NYC plays all-time on the coasts, particularly in the Northeast, equally nosotros saw with In the Heights having its most vibrant ticket sales there.Dear Evan Hansenover-indexed in Table salt Lake Metropolis over the weekend, with 5 its pinnacle grossing cinemas being in theater. Information technology but then happens that YA movies work in the Utah capital.
In the wake of musicals' revival on the big screen post-2003 Oscar Best Film winner Chicago($170.7M, $306.8M WW), fifty-fifty though nosotros've seen great successes from both Broadway adaptions similarLes MisandMamma Mia,and completely original fare for the big screen, i.e.The Greatest ShowmanandLa La Land,the fact of the matter is that musicals remain the riskiest subgenre at the box office from both a critical and sheer box office perspective.
If you take a look, some of the near popular, top-grossing Broadway musicals which made their mode into movie theaters have been widely panned by film reviews, and failed to reap any kind of dandy financial success, i.e. Rent ($29M domestic B.O., $31.7M WW), 2005'south The Producers ($nineteen.4M, $38M WW),Phantom of the Opera($51.3M domestic, $154.6M WW), and even pre-Chicago, Madonna'sEvita ($50M domestic, $141M WW on a $55M pricetag before P&A spend).
Even Chicagodirector Rob Marshall, himself in his second characteristic musical, Nine,given that starry packet of Daniel Twenty-four hour period Lewis, Fergie, Nicole Kidman, Marion Cottillard, Penelope Cruz, and Kate Hudson, couldn't replicate the success of his Oscar Best Moving picture winner, seeing 39% Rotten Tomatoes reviews and a last box function of less than $20M domestic, and $54M WW.
Given Disney'due south family packaging of Marshall'south take on Stephen Sondheim's (the quirkiest of Broadways scribes who doesn't e'er spell mass entreatment) Into the Woods, that pic became a 2014 year-end holiday event at $212.9M WW. Just overall, Broadway largely has a hard time translating at the domestic B.O.
Had Universal sold Dear Evan Hansen to Netflix or Amazon, they would accept certainly made banking concern, and cutting their P&A spend ever more. But how much of a splash or resonance would the movie have fabricated? And would information technology have been worth information technology to buy out talent on the project?
The characteristic version of seven-time Tony nominatedThe Promwent directly to Netflix (afterward a short limited theatrical run where grosses weren't reported) with Ryan Murphy directing and a tricked-out cast that included Meryl Streep, Kerry Washington, Nicole Kidman, James Corden and more. Critically, similar virtually of the musicals mentioned in this piece,The Prom was bashed on Rotten Tomatoes at 54%. We don't know annihilation almost its overall viewership success, equally it didn't crevice Netflix's most-watched movies around the globe. The tenth and eleventh most-watched titles on that list, Army of the DeadandMidnight Sky, pulled in 72M households WW. Is anyone yet talking near The Prom?
Sending Honey Evan Hansen straight to Peacock wouldn't have raised eyebrows in a way that the studio is looking to draw people to the service with a franchise like Halloween Kills. Not to mention, making Dear Evan Hansen available immediately day-and-appointment in theaters and on Peacock would have significantly collapsed the pic's coincident windows, and as we've seen with Warner Bros.' Cry Macho, Malignant, and In the Heights, when the movies don't work at the box function, they're every bit lackluster on the service.
So at the finish of the day, fifty-fifty with a poor ticket sales,Dear Evan Hansen's best place is in theaters and with a theatrical window. And information technology's a short i at 17-days until PVOD. The motion picture will still qualify for Universal'southward long-term lucrative international goggle box output deals. And considering it was a theatrical release, that raises the movie'due south profile, and makes information technology stand up out on any PVOD, streaming carte, heck, even the pay Tv cable windows where Universal is licensing its library and still making dough (the studio's 2022 live-action slate and beyond will accept its Pay One window with Amazon).
Non to mention, as studios send titles to streaming in their initial window and purchase talent out of their deals, information technology's arguably an inflated price process. Word is that enabling Halloween Killsto go day-and-appointment was easy when it came to that flick's participation players: Universal cashed them out like information technology was already a blockbuster hit. WithDear Evan Hansen,already at a depression $27M internet product price, Uni had to cut its losses. Why would they pay out talent like it was a blockbuster when they knewBeloved Evan Hansenwasn't going to work?
Says ane quondam studio executive this morning on their suggestion for Beloved Evan Hansen: "I would take released the movie through Focus, opened it at a prerequisite 1,000 screens to quality for any same deals, and marketed it differently."
Source: https://deadline.com/2021/09/dear-evan-hansen-bombs-at-the-box-office-streaming-1234844609/
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