14 DAY TRIAL // He might not be back, after all. “Terminator: Genisys” opened in the US on the 4th of July holiday weekend but failed to make a lasting impression at the box office or with the critics. It’s still to arrive on major markets like China, but overall gross is less than what Skydance and Paramount were counting on.
Make no mistake, “Genisys,” for its convoluted story and negative buzz pre-release, will still make a profit, but it won’t be making enough money to warrant further investments in a sequel, The Hollywood Reporter believes.
Last September, a full 10 months before “Genisys” opened, studio executives announced follow-up movies for 2017 and 2018, respectively, fully convinced that the reboot would be welcomed with cheers by the fans and the willingness to pay the ticket price.
THR says that “Genisys” was made on a budget of $155 million (€141.6 million) before marketing costs, and that it will probably end up making $375 to $400 million (€342.6 to €365.4 million) worldwide by the time it finishes its run. This is what is called a “bubble” movie: one that performs decently, but not good enough to hint at massive interest in a sequel.
In other words, things are not looking good for “Terminator,” especially if you consider that the franchise is now at the second attempt to revive it. “Terminator: Salvation” (2009) was in a similar situation, and it was eventually dropped from the schedule as a franchise.
After all, the loyal fans of the original movies only have so much patience to waste over ill-inspired attempts at bringing their favorite franchise back.