The Big Picture
- The Creator has made over $60 million at the global box office, but it still hasn’t surpassed its production budget of $80 million.
- The film has been more successful internationally, earning $36.9 million, compared to its $24.9 million domestic earnings.
- Despite its international success, the question remains whether The Creator will be profitable, as its reported production fee doesn’t include marketing costs.
The Creator is still some way off of surpassing the money spent on its production at the global box office. The original science-fiction action film from writer/director Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) has crept over the $60 million mark worldwide, for a total of $61.8 million following its second weekend of release. The film was produced for approximately $80 million.
The box office split has seen the film starring lead John David Washington earn $24.9 million domestically and $36.9 million internationally — having performed well in a number of overseas markets. On the domestic front, The Creator slots into the number four spot this weekend behind The Exorcist: Believer, PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, and Saw X with a $6.1 million take representing a hold of -57%, putting it ahead of fellow science fiction movie Dune (-62%), but behind Blade Runner: 2049 (-53%). Internationally, however, The Creator fared better, taking in $10.8 million in its second weekend with a hold of -44% excluding new markets. The story of humans vs artificial intelligence debuted as the number one non-local movie in Korea and ranks highly in many territories. The Creator remains the number one non-local movie in French theaters, second in the United Kingdom and Spain and third in Australia.
The Creator backed up its high ranking in international markets via a series of strong holds in several regions, with the best coming in Spain (-17%), followed by Australia (-26%), Germany (-31%), France (-33%), UK (-42%), Italy (-46%) and Mexico (-49%). However, despite a strong showing internationally, The Creator’s global box office gross of $61.8 million following two weekends raises the question of how profitable this film can be given the fact that the reported $80 million production fee comes before marketing costs. Time will tell if The Creator will become a moneymaker for New Regency, with a pending release in Japan hopefully helping its cause.
What Is ‘The Creator’ About?
Written and directed by Edwards, The Creator stars Washington in the lead role in a dystopian future where humans are at war with Artificial Intelligence. Washington’s character Joshua is tasked with taking out the AI’s secret weapon — a mission that could turn the tides of war in humanity’s favor, but when he discovers that the secret weapon is an AI in the form of a child, Joshua is faced with a mild dilemma. In an age where science-fiction cinema offerings are mainly reserved for franchises, Collider’s Maggie Lovitt praised The Creator for being “a truly remarkable piece of original science fiction storytelling.”
The Creator is available to watch in theaters right now.
