Hollywood in 2023: A year of unexpected box office highs and lows

The year 2023 was an anomaly for Hollywood. On the one hand, new box office records were set for successful films; on the other, big-budget superhero movies were lost to the box office. The growing use of artificial intelligence forced creative workers to protest against the tech phenomenon. 

Barbie and Oppenheimer are two opposite genres, yet people connecting movies have raised the flag too high for a new trend in the US film industry. Despite all of this, however, many low-budget films were successful. 

No hype, no big budget marketing: Released on April 5, this film, produced by Universal Pictures, was released on a budget of $100 million. It grossed $1.36 billion at the box office, making it the second-highest-grossing animated film ever.

The film's engaging story and social media buzz from the fans made it a global success. The success of this movie was almost guaranteed because it used things that make people feel strong emotions. It made people remember their happy childhood memories of playing Mario games, and it gave them a feeling of excitement and joy.

Horrors won the box office: Directed by Julius Avery and starring Colin O'Donoghue, 'The Pope's Exorcist' was released on July 28. It had a budget of $18 million and grossed $77 million at the box office. 

Survival horror movies have always been a box office hit for Hollywood. Evil Dead Rise, Directed by Lee Cronin and starring Alyssa Sutherland, was released on August 11. It had a budget of $19 million and grossed $147 million at the box office. The film's story and the audio-visual effects did the work. 

Comparatively, horror films are cheaper to make, and the stakes are low if we compare them with superhero films. Also, this genre can create a franchise, eventually creating a fanbase. 'The Insidious: The Red Door' was such a film, and it was released on August 25. The film had a minimal budget of $16 million and grossed $189 million at the box office. 

'The Nun 2', directed by Michael Chaves and starring Bonnie Aarons, was released on September 22. It had a budget of $38 million and grossed $268 million at the box office.

Big-budget superhero films failed: DC Comics' The Flash was a disaster at the box office. The superhero genre film had a huge budget of $200 million and grossed $270 million at the box office. 

Another DC disappointment came in 'Shazam! Fury of the Gods.' Releasing on December 16 with a budget of $125 million, the film grossed only $134 million, making it both a critical and commercial disappointment.

Franchise, fandom, and flop: 2023 has been a bizarre year for the famous franchise-based cinemas. 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' was a much-hyped cinema. This film, with Harrison Ford, earned $375 million worldwide at the box office against a budget of $300 million. It can't be said to be a great commercial success, like previous Indiana Jones films. However, it might have covered-up the production cost if we overlooked the promotional cost. 

A famous spy franchise with Tom Cruise in it seems already a hit even before release. Yet, the 7th installation of Mission Impossible had a budget of $291 million in terms of its making cost. 

Trade experts estimated that the film had spent more than $100 million on marketing. We have watched how beautifully the behind-the-scenes scenes were made to promote the film. So, the film had to collect $600 million to achieve the breakeven. However, it grossed $567 million at the box office, making it an average hit and, to some, a flop!

Barbenheimer had the last laugh: Barbie was the only film in 2023 with a higher marketing cost than its actual production. Made with a budget of $145 million for production and $150 million for promotion and marketing, this Greta Gerwig-directed vibrant cinema with Margot Robbie grossed $1.44 billion, a mammoth number at the box office, making it the highest-grossing film of the year.

Oppenheimer was also good. A $100 million Political-thriller cinema ended its journey $50 million short of $1 billion. 

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