By the end of its theatrical run, box office analysis predicts that The Flash would have cost Warner Bros. Discovery more than $200 million.
The Flash officially surpassed $200 million worldwide, according to box office analyst Luiz Fernando, after earning $26.6 million overseas during its second weekend of release.
“Painful, but needs to be mentioned: if [The Flash] ends up within the projection, since studio just keeps half share from [box office] global grosses, it won’t even pay its total [$150 million] marketing campaign. WB would have lost less money releasing it on Max or not releasing it at all,” Fernando tweeted.
“Not to mention apart from the expensive promo campaign, [The Flash] still has a [$190 million] budget price tag,” he continued. “This film may easily lose more than [$200 million] for WB when all is said and done, a financial catastrophe as dangerous as [Justice League], which led to a major shakeup at WB in 2017.”
Fernando concluded, “The hard question to be asked is: what happens to the WBD’s finances if [Blue Beetle and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom] end up being financial disasters as well?”
The Flash premiered in cinemas on June 16, receiving highly positive early reviews. However, despite the initial acclaim, the long-awaited DC film struggled at the box office.
According to Box Office Mojo, The Flash earned only $55 million domestically during its opening weekend. As of now, the movie has amassed a domestic total of $87.5 million and a worldwide total of $210.8 million. If the studio receives half of the worldwide earnings, Warner Bros. (WB) would only receive $105.4 million.
These numbers present a worrisome situation for The Flash, considering its substantial production budget alone. While Fernando reported a budget of $190 million, other sources like Deadline and CBC suggest that the production budget could range from $200-220 million.
Even if we assume a production budget of $190 million, when combined with the reported marketing budget of $150 million, the film’s total cost would reach $340 million. Therefore, Fernando’s prediction that The Flash could lose $200 million or more appears to be accurate unless the situation improves.
Directed by Andy Muschietti, The Flash features Ezra Miller, a familiar face from the DC Extended Universe, in their first solo outing as Barry Allen/the Flash.
Miller is joined by Michael Keaton, reprising his role as Bruce Wayne/Batman from Tim Burton’s Batman films. Completing the film’s leading trio is Sasha Calle, portraying Kara Zor-El/Supergirl.
The Flash is currently being shown in theaters.
