The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is drawing close to an important box office milestone. The movie is a prequel to the Hunger Games movies following future villain Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) in his younger years before becoming President of Panem. The movie debuted the weekend before Thanksgiving with a domestic opening gross of $44.6 million that was the lowest in the franchise, yet took No. 1 that weekend.
Per Variety, the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes box office has grossed an additional $26.2 million internationally for a global second weekend of $68.8 million. This brings its cumulative worldwide gross to $197.2 million, just shy of the important $200 million milestone. So far, only 21 movies have passed that particular threshold in 2023, ranging from Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves ($208.2 million) to Barbie ($1.4 billion).
How Will Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Rank by the End of the Year?
While the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes movie continues to trail behind the success of the previous Hunger Games installments, which were all released pre-pandemic, it is nevertheless making great progress toward making a profit. The movie boasts a production budget of $100 million, meaning that once it crosses the $200 million threshold, it will most likely be in the black. It will also have a chance to end up in the Top 20 movies of the year.
It remains to be seen how high the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes release can climb up the chart for 2023. In order to maintain a spot in the Top 20, it will also have to outgross several upcoming December blockbusters that have yet to be released. Those potential high-grossing titles include the concert documentary Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé, Wonka, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, and The Color Purple.
In order to secure a Top 20 standing in the face of that competition, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will likely have to at least outgross the movie that is currently No. 17, which is The Flash. The DC Studios title earned $270.6 million by the time it left theaters, meaning Songbirds would have to climb at least an additional $72 million. This is possible, considering it is projected to leg out at around $150 million in its domestic run alone, but it remains to be seen if the movie ends up fulfilling that potential.
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
- Release Date:
- 2023-11-17
- Director:
- Francis Lawrence
- Cast:
- Rachel Zegler, Josh Andrés Rivera, Hunter Schafer, Jason Schwartzman, Peter Dinklage, Viola Davis, Tom Blyth
- Rating:
- Not Yet Rated
- Main Genre:
- Action
- Genres:
- Action, Adventure, Drama
- Writers:
- Michael Arndt, Michael Lesslie
- Summary:
- Based on the novel of the same name by Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel to the original Hunger Games franchise set sixty-four years before the events of the first film/book. The story follows Coriolanus Snow before his rise to power as the cold and calculating President Snow. To escape his impoverished life and secure the tuition he needs to attend the University, Snow will partner with a tribute he is assigned to mentor and help her succeed to benefit the both of them.
- Story By:
- Suzanne Collins
- Characters By:
- Suzanne Collins
- Sequel:
- The Hunger Games
- Cinematographer:
- Jo Willems
- Producer:
- Nina Jacobson, Francis Lawrence, Brad Simpson
- Production Company:
- Color Force, Good Universe, Lionsgate
- Main Characters :
- Lucy Gray Baird, Tigris Snow, Lucretius ‘Lucky’ Flickerman, Sejanus Plinth, Casca Highbottom, Dr. Volumnia Gaul, Coriolanus Snow
- Sfx Supervisor:
- Claudius Rauch
- Distributor :
- Lionsgate
- Assistant Director :
- Christopher Surgent
