Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Pitch Meeting

Warning: Some SPOILERS lie ahead for Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire!

As it suffers a dismal second weekend at the box office, the latest episode of Screen Rant‘s Pitch Meeting series is looking at Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. The fifth installment in the beloved franchise finds the Spengler family now living in the iconic New York firehouse and carrying on the titular business, leading to their deadliest foe yet with the mysterious Garraka. Now helmed by Gil Kenan, and again co-written by him and Afterlife‘s Jason Reitman, the movie has garnered mixed reviews from critics, setting a new franchise low on Rotten Tomatoes.

Just a week after the movie’s release, Screen Rant‘s own Pitch Meeting series is diving into Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire in its latest episode. The video, as seen at the top of this article, breaks down some of the sequel’s biggest flaws, primarily the introduction of a large roster of new characters and nine returning ones, lamenting that most of them fail to get any meaningful arcs due to this overstuffing. The episode also humorously pokes fun at Garraka’s convoluted plan in the movie and the lack of any real ghostbusting through most of the 115-minute runtime.

Will Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’s Mixed Reception Hurt The Franchise’s Future?

While many franchises can find their way to overcome mixed reviews with audiences, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire‘s box office is not showing many positive signs thus far. Though it took the No. 1 spot in its opening weekend and pushed the franchise past the $1 billion mark, the sequel fell just short of topping the 2016 female-led reboot for the highest opening weekend with $45 million. Its second weekend has proven far more dire, however, as it’s only projected to gross $15.5 million, marking the lowest drop for the franchise with 65%.

Should this projection stay true, this would bring the movie’s worldwide box office thus far to $78.6 million, a fair margin short of its $100 million production budget. Considering most studios spend double the movie’s production figures on marketing, this would also put Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire‘s breakeven point at $200 million, thus necessitating a lot of ground to be covered in the coming weeks if it hopes to possibly be profitable, but also potentially the lowest grossing of the franchise. Check out how Frozen Empire‘s Rotten Tomatoes scores and financial figures compare to its predecessors:

Given its predecessor lasted in theaters for a solid 11 weeks, there is a faint possibility that Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire could shake off its early box office struggles to ultimately become profitable in the coming weeks. That being said, considering the sequel is contending with the still-successful Dune: Part Two, Kung Fu Panda 4 and newly released Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the mixed reviews could ultimately put a damper on its longevity. Should it not prove profitable, it would also prove a hindrance to Kenan and Reitman delivering on the Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire mid-credits sequel setup.