Latest news with #summerhits
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A summer of sequels and remakes: ‘Fantastic Four,' ‘Superman,' ‘Lilo and Stitch' among box office winners
Many of Hollywood's summer hits have shared one common formula, no matter what the genre: They are either remakes, sequels or part of a franchise. The strategy has mostly worked, as the domestic box office has effectively rebounded from a slow first quarter, grossing $3.26 billion since the first Friday of May, when Comscore, which collects ticketing data, begins tracking the summer season. The summer kicked off with a record Memorial Day weekend behind Disney's live-action remake of 'Lilo & Stitch' and the eighth installment of 'Mission: Impossible,' with some industry analysts branding the duo as 'Stitchpossible.' 'Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning' pulled in nearly $200 million at the domestic box office, but 'Lilo & Stitch' has been the star of the summer season, hauling in over $421 million domestically and over $1 billion globally. Studios have a long history of reprising action flicks and kid-friendly movies, but even decades-old comedies have been retooled as sequels this summer despite the genre falling flat at the box office in recent years. Paramount's 'The Naked Gun' ($33 million), released over 31 years after the franchise's last installment, opened at No. 3 at the box office on August 1. Disney's fantasy comedy 'Freakier Friday' opened at No. 2 at the domestic box office this weekend ($29 million) — almost 22 years after the original hit, 'Freaky Friday.' Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory, said Disney is a prime example of a studio using nostalgia within the last 30 years to attract moviegoers. 'That's just natural with where the younger moviegoing audience is now, combined with millennials who have started families of their own,' he said, adding that the revivals are for 'younger generations who are aging.' Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst at Comscore, said most of this summer's hits have been non-original films. Such movies are particularly effective for studios that 'like to play it safe' when attracting families, who are the bulk of the season's consumers and prefer seeing an established franchise film. Superhero movies, meanwhile, still loom large for moviegoers who want to see special effects on a big screen, even when those superheroes didn't draw big crowds to theaters in the past. Disney and Marvel's 'Fantastic Four,' which has grossed $230 million domestically, and Warner Bros. Pictures' and DC Studios' 'Superman' remake, which has grossed $331 million, marked new eras for both franchises. Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN. 'Sequels and remakes have a lot of natural advantages — they come with built-in awareness and interest, which is what drives moviegoing,' said David A. Gross, who publishes the movie industry newsletter FranchiseRe. Dergarabedian noted that Warner Bros. Pictures will continue the trend with 'The Conjuring: Last Rites' in early September. Originals still draw audiences while some sequels fall flat Not all of this summer's blockbusters have borrowed from past work. In fact, this weekend's No. 1 movie was an original film that was helped by its popular genre. 'Weapons,' a mystery horror film distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, topped the box office, opening to $42.5 million, according to Comscore. 'Weapons' follows another original horror hit from Warner Bros. Pictures that opened in April and ran through the summer: Ryan Coogler's 'Sinners,' which grossed $270 million domestically. 'Audiences love horror, and they love original horror,' Dergarabedian said. Warner Bros. Pictures also looked globally with racing drama 'F1,' which has pulled in a more-than-respectable $179 million at the domestic box office but a staggering $385 million internationally. 'It's a big message to Hollywood that more risks deserve to be taken on movies like 'Sinners' and 'Weapons' and 'F1,'' Robbins said. 'There's clearly a hunger out there for original films.' Gross said 'F1' and 'Sinners' are films that could return to the box office, 'in some form,' although Coogler has said a sequel isn't in the cards. 'This summer was a perfect mix of original films that tested the waters and, of course, a preponderance of remakes, sequels, known (intellectual property),' Dergarabedian said. 'It all kind of came together and it worked.' Yet Hollywood still had its share of remakes, sequels and new franchise installments that failed to draw big audiences this summer. 'Ballerina,' an addition to the John Wick franchise, grossed $58 million domestically, while 'Karate Kid: Legends' ($52.5 million) and 'M3GAN 2.0' ($24.1 million) fell short of expectations, said Robbins. He added that 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' ($31.4 million) performed modestly, but that was 'fairly unsurprising' because it lacked a 'modern audience hook.' '(The summer) has been feast or famine in so many ways,' he said, adding that predictions for the season were harder because it's been 'jam-packed' with franchises.
CNN
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
A summer of sequels and remakes: ‘Fantastic Four,' ‘Superman,' ‘Lilo and Stitch' among box office winners
Many of Hollywood's summer hits have shared one common formula, no matter what the genre: They are either remakes, sequels or part of a franchise. The strategy has mostly worked, as the domestic box office has effectively rebounded from a slow first quarter, grossing $3.26 billion since the first Friday of May, when Comscore, which collects ticketing data, begins tracking the summer season. The summer kicked off with a record Memorial Day weekend behind Disney's live-action remake of 'Lilo & Stitch' and the eighth installment of 'Mission: Impossible,' with some industry analysts branding the duo as 'Stitchpossible.' 'Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning' pulled in nearly $200 million at the domestic box office, but 'Lilo & Stitch' has been the star of the summer season, hauling in over $421 million domestically and over $1 billion globally. Studios have a long history of reprising action flicks and kid-friendly movies, but even decades-old comedies have been retooled as sequels this summer despite the genre falling flat at the box office in recent years. Paramount's 'The Naked Gun' ($33 million), released over 31 years after the franchise's last installment, opened at No. 3 at the box office on August 1. Disney's fantasy comedy 'Freakier Friday' opened at No. 2 at the domestic box office this weekend ($29 million) — almost 22 years after the original hit, 'Freaky Friday.' Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory, said Disney is a prime example of a studio using nostalgia within the last 30 years to attract moviegoers. 'That's just natural with where the younger moviegoing audience is now, combined with millennials who have started families of their own,' he said, adding that the revivals are for 'younger generations who are aging.' Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst at Comscore, said most of this summer's hits have been non-original films. Such movies are particularly effective for studios that 'like to play it safe' when attracting families, who are the bulk of the season's consumers and prefer seeing an established franchise film. Superhero movies, meanwhile, still loom large for moviegoers who want to see special effects on a big screen, even when those superheroes didn't draw big crowds to theaters in the past. Disney and Marvel's 'Fantastic Four,' which has grossed $230 million domestically, and Warner Bros. Pictures' and DC Studios' 'Superman' remake, which has grossed $331 million, marked new eras for both franchises. Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN. 'Sequels and remakes have a lot of natural advantages — they come with built-in awareness and interest, which is what drives moviegoing,' said David A. Gross, who publishes the movie industry newsletter FranchiseRe. Dergarabedian noted that Warner Bros. Pictures will continue the trend with 'The Conjuring: Last Rites' in early September. Not all of this summer's blockbusters have borrowed from past work. In fact, this weekend's No. 1 movie was an original film that was helped by its popular genre. 'Weapons,' a mystery horror film distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, topped the box office, opening to $42.5 million, according to Comscore. 'Weapons' follows another original horror hit from Warner Bros. Pictures that opened in April and ran through the summer: Ryan Coogler's 'Sinners,' which grossed $270 million domestically. 'Audiences love horror, and they love original horror,' Dergarbedian said. Warner Bros. Pictures also looked globally with racing drama 'F1,' which has pulled in a more-than-respectable $179 million at the domestic box office but a staggering $385 million internationally. 'It's a big message to Hollywood that more risks deserve to be taken on movies like 'Sinners' and 'Weapons' and 'F1,'' Robbins said. 'There's clearly a hunger out there for original films.' Gross said 'F1' and 'Sinners' are films that could return to the box office, 'in some form,' although Coogler has said a sequel isn't in the cards. 'This summer was a perfect mix of original films that tested the waters and, of course, a preponderance of remakes, sequels, known (intellectual property),' Dergarabedian said. 'It all kind of came together and it worked.' Yet Hollywood still had its share of remakes, sequels and new franchise installments that failed to draw big audiences this summer. 'Ballerina,' an addition to the John Wick franchise, grossed $58 million domestically, while 'Karate Kid: Legends' ($52.5 million) and 'M3GAN 2.0' ($24.1 million) fell short of expectations, said Robbins. He added that 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' ($31.4 million) performed modestly, but that was 'fairly unsurprising' because it lacked a 'modern audience hook.' '(The summer) has been feast or famine in so many ways,' he said, adding that predictions for the season were harder because it's been 'jam-packed' with franchises.
CNN
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
A summer of sequels and remakes: ‘Fantastic Four,' ‘Superman,' ‘Lilo and Stitch' among box office winners
Many of Hollywood's summer hits have shared one common formula, no matter what the genre: They are either remakes, sequels or part of a franchise. The strategy has mostly worked, as the domestic box office has effectively rebounded from a slow first quarter, grossing $3.26 billion since the first Friday of May, when Comscore, which collects ticketing data, begins tracking the summer season. The summer kicked off with a record Memorial Day weekend behind Disney's live-action remake of 'Lilo & Stitch' and the eighth installment of 'Mission: Impossible,' with some industry analysts branding the duo as 'Stitchpossible.' 'Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning' pulled in nearly $200 million at the domestic box office, but 'Lilo & Stitch' has been the star of the summer season, hauling in over $421 million domestically and over $1 billion globally. Studios have a long history of reprising action flicks and kid-friendly movies, but even decades-old comedies have been retooled as sequels this summer despite the genre falling flat at the box office in recent years. Paramount's 'The Naked Gun' ($33 million), released over 31 years after the franchise's last installment, opened at No. 3 at the box office on August 1. Disney's fantasy comedy 'Freakier Friday' opened at No. 2 at the domestic box office this weekend ($29 million) — almost 22 years after the original hit, 'Freaky Friday.' Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory, said Disney is a prime example of a studio using nostalgia within the last 30 years to attract moviegoers. 'That's just natural with where the younger moviegoing audience is now, combined with millennials who have started families of their own,' he said, adding that the revivals are for 'younger generations who are aging.' Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst at Comscore, said most of this summer's hits have been non-original films. Such movies are particularly effective for studios that 'like to play it safe' when attracting families, who are the bulk of the season's consumers and prefer seeing an established franchise film. Superhero movies, meanwhile, still loom large for moviegoers who want to see special effects on a big screen, even when those superheroes didn't draw big crowds to theaters in the past. Disney and Marvel's 'Fantastic Four,' which has grossed $230 million domestically, and Warner Bros. Pictures' and DC Studios' 'Superman' remake, which has grossed $331 million, marked new eras for both franchises. Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN. 'Sequels and remakes have a lot of natural advantages — they come with built-in awareness and interest, which is what drives moviegoing,' said David A. Gross, who publishes the movie industry newsletter FranchiseRe. Dergarabedian noted that Warner Bros. Pictures will continue the trend with 'The Conjuring: Last Rites' in early September. Not all of this summer's blockbusters have borrowed from past work. In fact, this weekend's No. 1 movie was an original film that was helped by its popular genre. 'Weapons,' a mystery horror film distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, topped the box office, opening to $42.5 million, according to Comscore. 'Weapons' follows another original horror hit from Warner Bros. Pictures that opened in April and ran through the summer: Ryan Coogler's 'Sinners,' which grossed $270 million domestically. 'Audiences love horror, and they love original horror,' Dergarabedian said. Warner Bros. Pictures also looked globally with racing drama 'F1,' which has pulled in a more-than-respectable $179 million at the domestic box office but a staggering $385 million internationally. 'It's a big message to Hollywood that more risks deserve to be taken on movies like 'Sinners' and 'Weapons' and 'F1,'' Robbins said. 'There's clearly a hunger out there for original films.' Gross said 'F1' and 'Sinners' are films that could return to the box office, 'in some form,' although Coogler has said a sequel isn't in the cards. 'This summer was a perfect mix of original films that tested the waters and, of course, a preponderance of remakes, sequels, known (intellectual property),' Dergarabedian said. 'It all kind of came together and it worked.' Yet Hollywood still had its share of remakes, sequels and new franchise installments that failed to draw big audiences this summer. 'Ballerina,' an addition to the John Wick franchise, grossed $58 million domestically, while 'Karate Kid: Legends' ($52.5 million) and 'M3GAN 2.0' ($24.1 million) fell short of expectations, said Robbins. He added that 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' ($31.4 million) performed modestly, but that was 'fairly unsurprising' because it lacked a 'modern audience hook.' '(The summer) has been feast or famine in so many ways,' he said, adding that predictions for the season were harder because it's been 'jam-packed' with franchises.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The undeniable appeal of the ‘trust me' movie
Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and Adam Sandler all star in new movies about older, unconventional pros who make one last return to their fields. The box office loves it. There's a guy. He's really good at what he does, but his methods are a bit unconventional. So unconventional, in fact, that he's a bit notorious and hesitant to return to his career, where his peers and bosses find him dangerous and irritating. But things are getting pretty bad, so he has to make a triumphant return, breaking a few rules in his quest to save the day. You'll just have to trust him. This is the plot of at least three movies that premiered this summer: Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning, F1: The Movie and Happy Gilmore 2. They're all ultra-successful hits led by beloved movie stars — a dying breed who don't sign on to just any project. The 'trust me' trope has proven to be so successful, it's no wonder they're fueling the box office and streaming charts. 'I need you to trust me one last time,' Tom Cruise's stubbornly capable secret agent character says in Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning. He proceeds to push the laws of physics and defy the typical constraints of the human body — never mind that Cruise is in his 60s and does his own stunts — frustrating those around him, but saving the world. The appeal of the 'trust me' trope goes back to our psychological need in stories and in real life to feel secure, Alex Beene, a professor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, tells Yahoo. We like seeing this sort of thing played out onscreen over and over again because it's one of our most basic desires. 'As much as men and women claim to love independence in most aspects of their lives, there's a sense of relief and assuredness in letting someone else solve problems and overcome challenges,' he says. 'As a member of the audience, it's even more appealing because it makes you feel [that] all because of one person or group, everything ultimately will be OK.' 'Belly fat and bad knees be damed' The fact that the fictional heroes we're often comforted by are tough, experienced men appeals greatly to other people like them. Adults over 45 are the demographic least likely to go to the movies, according to a Yahoo News/YouGov Survey conducted in May 2025, so it makes sense that studios may craft narratives and cast actors specifically to break into that market. 'For older men, [a 'trust me' story] offers the promise that they, too, could pull it all together to save themselves or their families or the world if push came to shove, belly fat and bad knees be damned,' Tim Stevens, a writer at Connecticut College, tells Yahoo. Younger demographics may see a bit of their own dads in those characters. Though Cruise's character isn't a father, he has a fatherly relationship with several of his younger teammates, leading and protecting them even at his own expense. Christopher McKittrick, the former editor of Creative Screenwriting magazine, tells Yahoo that "grizzled old gunslinger" stories have been popular since classic Western films first took off. They appeal to dads in particular because they love seeing someone truly talented and experienced share their knowledge with young people, who then trust them and take their advice. It helps that the stars of these movies are actually veterans of their own industries, too. 'Men can identify with aging movie stars like … Cruise and Pitt based on their personas of keeping a cool head under fire, utilizing their unique expertise to solve a critical problem, and, of course, teaching those young people what they don't know,' McKittrick says. 'Taking dad to see a crowd-pleasing movie like this can make for an easy family outing and is an easy way for kids to connect with dad's interests.' It's nice to see an older guy come out on top. It may happen all the time in the movies now, but that's not typically the case in sports or other real-life, action-packed scenarios. In F1: The Movie, Brad Pitt plays a talented but rough-around-the-edges driver who returns to Formula 1 racing years after a horrific crash, only to use strategic aggressive driving and crashing to help his team defeat the competition. He defies the expectations of his younger teammate, but instead of shoving it in his face, he teaches the rising star a thing or two. Dads love this, but so do audiences at large: F1: The Movie has made more than $500 million at the global box office, becoming both Pitt and production company Apple's biggest blockbuster. To Stevens, 'trust me' movies all share a similar goal: to fulfill 'the promise that it is never too late for you to make a difference, [that] your heroes are still the people they were when you first looked up to them and [that] there are people out there in the world motivated by more than greed, arrogance and cynicism.' I need a hero Though the sheen of pure masculinity is what may initially draw people into these action movies and comedies, there's an inherent vulnerability in these stories. Returning to the careers they've left, even if the goal is to save the day, requires vulnerability. The way this subverts our expectations and reverses typical power dynamics 'makes a self-reliant hero irresistibly human and relatable,' Ali Shehata, a physician and founder of production company FamCinema, tells Yahoo. The fact that our protagonists are begging for trust 'one last time' adds an element of scarcity, resulting in a situation that is 'truly epic,' he says. Even Happy Gilmore, a golfer whose violently powerful swing infuriated his peers and made him a legend, goes to a place of deep vulnerability in Happy Gilmore 2. Twenty-nine years after the original film, he returns to golf to earn money for his daughter's education. Though his character oozes humor and aggression, the sequel pushes him — and us — to emotional places. Viewers are buying into it as well — it had the biggest weekend debut ever for a Netflix film with 46 million views in just three days. 'It gives us that exhilarating feeling of being part of something bigger than ourselves, while also creating suspense about whether that precious trust we lend to our hero, whom we have faithfully followed for so many previous adventures, will finally be vindicated,' Shehata says. It's satisfying to see them succeed as their enemies and critics fail, delivering a happy ending through action-packed events, unconventional twists and emotionally vulnerable moments. It's no wonder it's the go-to formula for a box office hit this summer. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The undeniable appeal of the ‘trust me' movie
Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and Adam Sandler all star in new movies about older, unconventional pros who make one last return to their fields. The box office loves it. There's a guy. He's really good at what he does, but his methods are a bit unconventional. So unconventional, in fact, that he's a bit notorious and hesitant to return to his career, where his peers and bosses find him dangerous and irritating. But things are getting pretty bad, so he has to make a triumphant return, breaking a few rules in his quest to save the day. You'll just have to trust him. This is the plot of at least three movies that premiered this summer: Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning, F1: The Movie and Happy Gilmore 2. They're all ultra-successful hits led by beloved movie stars — a dying breed who don't sign on to just any project. The 'trust me' trope has proven to be so successful, it's no wonder they're fueling the box office and streaming charts. 'I need you to trust me one last time,' Tom Cruise's stubbornly capable secret agent character says in Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning. He proceeds to push the laws of physics and defy the typical constraints of the human body — never mind that Cruise is in his 60s and does his own stunts — frustrating those around him, but saving the world. The appeal of the 'trust me' trope goes back to our psychological need in stories and in real life to feel secure, Alex Beene, a professor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, tells Yahoo. We like seeing this sort of thing played out onscreen over and over again because it's one of our most basic desires. 'As much as men and women claim to love independence in most aspects of their lives, there's a sense of relief and assuredness in letting someone else solve problems and overcome challenges,' he says. 'As a member of the audience, it's even more appealing because it makes you feel [that] all because of one person or group, everything ultimately will be OK.' 'Belly fat and bad knees be damed' The fact that the fictional heroes we're often comforted by are tough, experienced men appeals greatly to other people like them. Adults over 45 are the demographic least likely to go to the movies, according to a Yahoo News/YouGov Survey conducted in May 2025, so it makes sense that studios may craft narratives and cast actors specifically to break into that market. 'For older men, [a 'trust me' story] offers the promise that they, too, could pull it all together to save themselves or their families or the world if push came to shove, belly fat and bad knees be damned,' Tim Stevens, a writer at Connecticut College, tells Yahoo. Younger demographics may see a bit of their own dads in those characters. Though Cruise's character isn't a father, he has a fatherly relationship with several of his younger teammates, leading and protecting them even at his own expense. Christopher McKittrick, the former editor of Creative Screenwriting magazine, tells Yahoo that "grizzled old gunslinger" stories have been popular since classic Western films first took off. They appeal to dads in particular because they love seeing someone truly talented and experienced share their knowledge with young people, who then trust them and take their advice. It helps that the stars of these movies are actually veterans of their own industries, too. 'Men can identify with aging movie stars like … Cruise and Pitt based on their personas of keeping a cool head under fire, utilizing their unique expertise to solve a critical problem, and, of course, teaching those young people what they don't know,' McKittrick says. 'Taking dad to see a crowd-pleasing movie like this can make for an easy family outing and is an easy way for kids to connect with dad's interests.' It's nice to see an older guy come out on top. It may happen all the time in the movies now, but that's not typically the case in sports or other real-life, action-packed scenarios. In F1: The Movie, Brad Pitt plays a talented but rough-around-the-edges driver who returns to Formula 1 racing years after a horrific crash, only to use strategic aggressive driving and crashing to help his team defeat the competition. He defies the expectations of his younger teammate, but instead of shoving it in his face, he teaches the rising star a thing or two. Dads love this, but so do audiences at large: F1: The Movie has made more than $500 million at the global box office, becoming both Pitt and production company Apple's biggest blockbuster. To Stevens, 'trust me' movies all share a similar goal: to fulfill 'the promise that it is never too late for you to make a difference, [that] your heroes are still the people they were when you first looked up to them and [that] there are people out there in the world motivated by more than greed, arrogance and cynicism.' I need a hero Though the sheen of pure masculinity is what may initially draw people into these action movies and comedies, there's an inherent vulnerability in these stories. Returning to the careers they've left, even if the goal is to save the day, requires vulnerability. The way this subverts our expectations and reverses typical power dynamics 'makes a self-reliant hero irresistibly human and relatable,' Ali Shehata, a physician and founder of production company FamCinema, tells Yahoo. The fact that our protagonists are begging for trust 'one last time' adds an element of scarcity, resulting in a situation that is 'truly epic,' he says. Even Happy Gilmore, a golfer whose violently powerful swing infuriated his peers and made him a legend, goes to a place of deep vulnerability in Happy Gilmore 2. Twenty-nine years after the original film, he returns to golf to earn money for his daughter's education. Though his character oozes humor and aggression, the sequel pushes him — and us — to emotional places. Viewers are buying into it as well — it had the biggest weekend debut ever for a Netflix film with 46 million views in just three days. 'It gives us that exhilarating feeling of being part of something bigger than ourselves, while also creating suspense about whether that precious trust we lend to our hero, whom we have faithfully followed for so many previous adventures, will finally be vindicated,' Shehata says. It's satisfying to see them succeed as their enemies and critics fail, delivering a happy ending through action-packed events, unconventional twists and emotionally vulnerable moments. It's no wonder it's the go-to formula for a box office hit this summer. Solve the daily Crossword
