Receipts: ' The Boy and the Heron' Soars, 'Blue Beetle' Struggles

Domestic: Gran Turismo is nearing a domestic gross of $24 million in its first ten days in theaters. The auto racing drama from Sony Pictures had an $8.5 million debut, and has fared well since its release. With an estimated $60 million production budget and $30 million advertising budget, the film is poised to call itself a success: it has brought in more than two times roughly $8 million wide openings of similar auto-racing films The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019) and Logan Lucky (2017). Starring Archie Madekwe, Djimon Hounsou, Sang Heon Lee, David Harbour, and Orlando Bloom, Gran Turismo is based on a true story. The film follows “unlikely underdogs” in the auto-racing world – a blue-collar gamer, a former race car driver, and a motorsport executive – as they team up to take on the sport. The film has received overall positive ratings from critics, with a 63% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and almost universally positive responses from audiences, with a 98% audience score. 

After a rocky start in theaters, DC’s Blue Beetle has finally inched over $50 million domestically. Though the superhero film surpassed the $50 million mark, its estimated $104 million production budget has left audiences and critics alike wondering about the future of DC, whose last several films have fared similarly poorly. The action film stars Xolo Maridueña as Blue Beetle, alongside George Lopez, Bruna Marquezine, Raoul Trujillo, and Susan Sarandon, and directed by Ángel Manuel Soto. It follows Jamie Reyes (Maridueña), who stumbles across a biotechnical archaism that leaves him with superpowers. Despite its disappointing performance at the box office thus far, Blue Beetle has garnered praise from audiences and critics, with a 78% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

International: Spanish film Campeonex is seeing runaway success in theaters. After 2018’s Campeones (Champions) became Spain’s biggest box office hit in the last seven years, sparking a US remake, Campeonex has raked in $5.3 million across 423 theaters in Spain in two weeks. The comedy features much of the same cast as its 2018 predecessor, with  Jesús Vidal, Gloria Ramos, Sergio Olmo, Jesús Lago Solís, José de Luna, Fran Fuentes, Alberto Nieto, Roberto Chinchilla and Stefan López reprising their roles. The film follows the team, whose bumbling new coach enrolls them in track and field instead of basketball, as they try their hand at a new sport. With a 6.5/10 rating on IMDb, Campeonex has fast become an audience favorite in the image of Campeones before it. 

Beloved director Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s newest film, The Boy and the Heron (released as How Do You Live? in Japan), continues its raging success in Japan. Grossing $50.6 million in the country since its release 7 weeks ago, The Boy and the Heron is poised to become a fan favorite in Miyazaki’s cherished catalog. The animated film, which set a three-day opening box office record in Japan during its July 14th premiere, is entirely hand-drawn, and marks Miyazaki’s return to filmmaking after ten years. The film is set during World War II and tells the story of Mahito Maki, a young boy who discovers a talking heron and an abandoned tower in his town that leads to a fantastical adventure. The Boy and the Heron stars Masaki Suda voicing the heron, Soma Santoki voicing Mahito, Aimyon as the voice of Himi, and Takuya Kimura as Shoichi. With a 90% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, The Boy and the Heron will likely continue bringing in high numbers and find a place in the audience’s hearts.

Streaming: Netflix’s animated feature The Monkey King continues its two-week run as the #1 film on the platform, with 23.2 million hours viewed. Starring Jimmy O. Yang, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Bowen Yang, and comedian Jo Koy, The Monkey King finds inspiration in the novel Journey to the West, set in the Chinese Ming dynasty. A monkey and a young girl team up to fight demons, dragons, and deities in the quest for eternal life. The film has a 68% audience score and a 60% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. 

Heart of Stone finds itself in second place, marking its third week in Netflix’s Global Top 10 with 28.5 million hours watched. Featuring Alia Bhatt, Jing Lusi, Sophie Okonedo, and Gal Gadot, the film follows intelligence operative Rachel Stone (Gadot) on a dangerous international mission to protect The Heart, an artificial intelligence system, as part of a peacekeeping operation known as Charter. Despite a 29% critic rating and 53% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, the film continues to bring in viewers since its August 11th release on the streamer.