The Good Dinosaur Could Be Pixar's First Big Flop

Despite the return to classic form of ‘Inside Out’, it seems that Pixar’s latest movie could be its first flop.

'The Good Dinosaur’ was released on November 25 in the US, and it’s already said to be 'fading fast’ in its box office takings.

Telling the story of an alternate Earth, where the asteroid with collided with the planet 65 million years ago passed safely by and did not cause the extinction of the dinosaurs, it centres on a young apatosaurus and his quest to reunite with his family.

But despite a solid voice cast, including Sam Elliott, Anna Paquin and France McDormand, the movie has failed to draw crowds.

It has made just $131.3 million (£87 million) so far globally, and analysts say that the film will be lucky to reach the $400 million (£265 million) mark.

Although that seems like a decent figure, the movie cost $200 million (£133 million) to make.

Add to that a figure thought to be around $150 million (£100 million) for marketing – though some have complained that they’ve seen less marketing than previous Pixar movies – and it’s said that Disney will need $500 million (£332 million) just to break even.

If the movie fails to hit the $400 million mark, it could find itself the lowest-grossing Pixar movie in its 16 movie history.

That dubious accolade is currently held by 1998’s 'A Bug’s Life’, which made $363 million (£241 million).

One industry analyst told Variety: “It’s not resonating like a typical Pixar film.

“It’s on a path where they’re going to need home entertainment to drive profitability. Usually with Pixar, by the time they’ve gone through the first [release] window, they’re in the black.”

Another described the sluggish performance of the movie as 'disappointing’, after its ticket sales dropped a massive 60% after its opening weekend.

It’s already opened in over half of its territories around the world, and may be saved on its release in China, but so far it hasn’t managed to secure a release date there.

And it’s not been an easy road up to this point either.

The film was pushed back two years from its planned release date, with original director Bob Peterson removed from the job in 2013 because he reportedly 'couldn’t crack’ the movie’s third act.

Peter Sohn, a Pixar production artist, animator and voice artist, who directed its short film 'Partly Cloudy’ in 2009, then took over.

Though reviewed with reasonable favour (it has a respectable 76% 'fresh’ rating on reviews aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, while the overarching opinion appears to be 'good but not great’), the movie sits in stark contrast to its predecessor 'Inside Out’.

The front-runner for next year’s best animation Oscar was hailed by critics as a masterpiece, and made a huge $850 million (£565 million) worldwide.

Read More
Carrie Fisher Blasts Slave Leia Merch Ban
Sony picks up Trainspotting sequel
RIP Big Actor Robert Loggia

Image credits: Disney