Connect with us

Published

on

This summer’s movie season is poised to generate the lowest grossing box office in decades — with experts predicting a nearly $1 billion falloff from last year’s $4.1 billion haul because of a lack of blockbusters.

The dismal, $3 billion forecast is fueled by last year’s Hollywood labor strikes that halted production, pushing back new film releases. Disney will not release a Marvel movie until July — the first time the superhero franchise won’t hit big screens in May since 2009.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, the summer film season — which runs from the first weekend in May through Labor Day — routinely exceeded the $4 billion mark.

Last year, the success of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” helped generate in $4.1 billion during the key period, which typically accounts for 40% of the total annual receipts.

However, the first major film released this May, Universal’s “The Fall Guy,” had an underwhelming opening weekend. The action film, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, brought in a paltry $28 million.

The weak opening does not bode well for other non-Marvel films slated to premiere in the coming weeks, experts said.

Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst for Comscore, told CNBC that this year’s summer box office could generate $800 million less than last year.

Even with the inevitable year-over-year revenue downturn, the summer of 24 should be judged more by the quality and value of the moviegoing experience than the quantity of box office cash in the drawer, Dergarabedian said.

The last time ticket sales were as low as $3 billion during this season was in 2000, according to data from Comscore.

Other films in the pipeline this month include Disney’s “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” which debuts Friday. Ryan Reynolds’ kid-comedy “IF” hits theaters on May 17, while “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” and “The Garfield Movie” are both due out on May 24.

Marvel fans, meanwhile, will have to wait until late July before the release of “Deadpool and Wolverine.”

The film, starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, is Marvel’s first-ever R-rated flick, possibly hampering its box office.

On Tuesday, Disney CEO Bob Iger said it will release no more than three Marvel movies and up to two Disney+ shows each year as it focuses on quality following criticism that the company has been cranking out too many mediocre superhero flicks.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who plans to release a fourth installment of “Bad Boys” on June 7, agreed.

People just want to be entertained, Bruckheimer said. It really comes down to us to make the right movies that they want to go see.

The slowdown from the Hollywood strikes pushed back highly anticipated films such as “Mission: Impossible 8,” “Captain America: Brave New World” and “Thunderbolts,” to next year.

Continue Reading

Sports

Jets’ Scheifele misses G7 because of injury

Published

on

By

Jets' Scheifele misses G7 because of injury

Winnipeg forward Mark Scheifele did not play in Game 7 of the Jets’ first-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the St. Louis Blues on Sunday due to an undisclosed injury, coach Scott Arniel said.

Arniel ruled out Scheifele following the team’s morning skate. He was hurt in Game 5 — playing only 8:05 in the first period before exiting — and then did not travel with the Jets to St. Louis for Game 6. Arniel previously had said Scheifele was a game-time decision for Game 7.

Scheifele, 32, skated in a track suit Saturday, and Arniel told reporters the veteran was feeling better than he had the day before. Scheifele, however, was not able to participate in the Jets’ on-ice session by Sunday, quickly indicating he would not be available for the game.

Winnipeg held a 2-0 lead in the series over St. Louis before the Blues stormed back with a pair of wins to tie it, 2-2. The home team has won each game in the best-of-seven series so far.

The Jets’ challenge in closing out St. Louis only increases without Scheifele. Winnipeg already has been dealing with the uneven play of goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, a significant storyline in the series to date. Hellebuyck was pulled in all three of his starts at St. Louis while giving up a combined 16 goals on 66 shots (.758 SV%). In Game 6, Hellebuyck allowed four goals in only 5 minutes, 23 seconds of the second period.

Hellebuyck was Winnipeg’s backbone during the regular season, earning a Hart Trophy and Vezina Trophy nomination for his impeccable year (.925 SV%, 2.00 GAA).

Continue Reading

Sports

Stars expect Robertson, Heiskanen back in semis

Published

on

By

Stars expect Robertson, Heiskanen back in semis

Stars coach Pete DeBoer expects to have leading goal scorer Jason Robertson and standout defenseman Miro Heiskanen available in the Western Conference semifinals after both missed Dallas’ first-round series win over the Colorado Avalanche.

Following their thrilling Game 7 comeback victory over the Avalanche on Saturday night, the Stars await the winner of Sunday night’s Game 7 between the Winnipeg Jets and St. Louis Blues. If the Blues win, the Stars will have home-ice advantage in the best-of-seven series.

“I believe you’re going to see them both play in the second round, but I don’t know if it’s going to be Game 1 or Game 3 or Game 5,” DeBoer said after Saturday’s series clincher. “I consider them both day-to-day now, but there’s still some hurdles. It depends on when we start the series, how much time we have between now and Game 1. We’ll have a little better idea as we get closer.”

Robertson, 25, who posted 80 points (35 goals, 45 assists) in 82 games this season, suffered a lower-body injury in the regular-season finale April 16 and was considered week-to-week at the time.

Heiskanen hasn’t played since injuring his left knee in a Jan. 28 collision with Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone. Initially expected to miss three to four months, the 25-year-old defenseman had surgery Feb. 4 and sat out the final 32 games of the regular season. In 50 games, he collected 25 points (five goals, 20 assists) and averaged 25:10 of ice time, which ranked fifth among NHL blueliners.

Continue Reading

Environment

U.S. crude oil prices fall more than 4% after OPEC+ agrees to surge production in June

Published

on

By

U.S. crude oil prices fall more than 4% after OPEC+ agrees to surge production in June

Logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

Andrey Rudakov | Bloomberg | Getty Images

U.S. crude oil futures fell more than 4% on Sunday, after OPEC+ agreed to surge production for a second month.

U.S. crude was down $2.49, or 4.27%, to $55.80 a barrel shortly after trading opened. Global benchmark Brent fell $2.39, or 3.9%, to $58.90 per barrel. Oil prices have fallen more than 20% this year.

The eight producers in the group, led by Saudi Arabia, agreed on Saturday to increase output by another 411,000 barrels per day in June. The decision comes a month after OPEC+ surprised the market by agreeing to surge production in May by the same amount.

The June production hike is nearly triple the 140,000 bpd that Goldman Sachs had originally forecast. OPEC+ is bringing more than 800,000 bpd of additional supply to the market over the course of two months.

Oil prices in April posted the biggest monthly loss since 2021, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs have raised fears of a recession that will slow demand at the same time that OPEC+ is quickly increasing supply.

Oilfield service firms such as Baker Hughes and SLB are expecting investment in exploration and production to decline this year due to the weak price environment.

“The prospects of an oversupplied oil market, rising tariffs, uncertainty in Mexico and activity weakness in Saudi Arabia are collectively constraining international upstream spending levels,” Baker Hughes CEO Lorenzo Simonelli said on the company’s first-quarter earnings call on April 25.

Oil majors Chevron and Exxon reported first-quarter earnings last week that fell compared to the same period in 2024 due to lower oil prices.

Goldman is forecasting that U.S. crude and Brent prices will average $59 and $63 per barrel, respectively, this year.

Catch up on the latest energy news from CNBC Pro:

Continue Reading

Trending