The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is projected to break an unpleasant box office record for the franchise. Adapted from the Suzanne Collins prequel novel of the same name, the newest installment takes on the coming-of-age story of a young Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) who mentors District 12 tribute Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) in the 10th Hunger Games. Alongside Blyth and Zegler, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes cast also includes Viola Davis (Dr. Volumnia Gaul), Peter Dinklage (Dean Casca Highbottom), and Hunter Schafer (Tigris).
Deadline releases new box office projections for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. According to the report, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is expected to earn $50 million during its opening weekend. If the projection stands, the upcoming prequel will break the franchise’s record for the lowest-grossing opening weekend. The previous record-holder was Mockingjay – Part 2, which grossed $102 million on its opening weekend in 2015. The estimated budget for the prequel was around $100 million.
Movies | Domestic Box Office Opening Weekend Gross (Per Box Office Mojo) |
|---|---|
Hunger Games (2012) | $152,535,747 |
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) | $158,074,286 |
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 (2014) | $121,897,634 |
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (2015) | $102,665,981 |
Why The Box Office For The Hunger Games Prequel Is Disappointing?
The Hunger Games franchise has been largely successful for Lionsgate, bringing in over $3 billion overall. In terms of opening box office totals, however, the franchise saw a major dip in the last two entries of the series. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 made $121 million on its opening weekend in 2014, whereas The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 took in a franchise-low $102 million. This paled in comparison to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, which brought in $158 million, just beating the franchise opener, which grossed $152 million.
Unfortunately, with a $50 million opening projection, the prequel will likely rank with the lowest domestic opening gross for the franchise, barely making half of Mockingjay – Part 2′s three-day weekend collection in 2015. Despite the disappointing projection, there is some hope that the prequel could still become a success, given the movie’s budget is $100 million. Since the breakeven point is typically double the budget, the movie needs to make at least $200 million worldwide to see some positive momentum.
The reasons for the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ low box office expectations may come down to a few factors, including the main cast’s inability to promote the prequel due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, the eight-year gap between Hunger Games movies, and the recent controversies with Zegler due to her comments about the Snow White live-action remake. Still, the commercial performance for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes could improve through word of mouth and positive reception and help revive the franchise from its hiatus. For now, the prequel hopes to survive the box office games in a very competitive holiday movie season.
Key Release Dates
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Release Date:2023-11-17
