If only it were just a bad dream.
That’s what a lot of folks in Hollywood are thinking at this year’s end.
The entertainment industry definitely had its share of ups and downs in 2023, with the labor strikes, internal friction, and even some rare ideological divisions.
But nothing compares to the disaster of the incredible shrinking box-office.
Disney, which is the largest entertainment company in the world, un-merrily continues on its downhill trajectory.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe, which is one of the most popular film franchises, is in serious condition, as was exemplified by “The Marvels” lower-than-expected revenues of $84.4 million, after costing $250 million to make.
Despite the successes of the “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” films, Hollywood executives are still wondering whether the once-invincible Marvel brand’s tanking will cause the entire cinema business to falter.
The Disney animated feature called “Wish,” with its $200 million budget, only managed to gross about $50 million domestically.
The live-action remake of “The Little Mermaid,” the fifth installment of “Indiana Jones,” and the reboot of “Haunted Mansion” all ended up far below box-office expectations.
Pixar isn’t what it used to be either. “Elemental,” the company’s only film of 2023, was below par in performance, with a box office of $154 million and a price tag of $200 million.
Warner’s “Aquaman” sequel, the DC superhero movie “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” had an embarrassing release, opening with a meager $28 million and having a domestic gross as of this writing of just over $46.6 million. The movie tracked the feeble box-office numbers of “The Flash” and “Blue Beetle.”
In developing my own perspective on things, I did a bit of research on Hollywood box-office numbers of the past and their comparison to those of the present.
Here’s what I found.
As of this writing, the ranking of 2023’s top-10 highest-grossing films in North America is as follows:
- “Barbie” $636.2 million
- “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” $574.9 million
- “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” $381.3 million
- “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” $358.9 million
- “Oppenheimer” $326.1 million
- “The Little Mermaid” $298.1 million
- “Avatar: The Way of Water” $283.0 million
- “Ant-Man and the Wasp” $214.5 million
- “John Wick” $187.0 million
- “Sound of Freedom” $184.1 million
Now here’s a look at the top box-office hits of 50 years ago.
The ranking of 1973’s top-10 highest-grossing films in North America (Unadjusted & Inflation-Adjusted) is as follows:
Unadjusted Gross (millions) Inflation-Adjusted Gross (millions)
- “The Exorcist” $193.0 ($1,013.3)
- “The Sting” $159.6 ($815.7)
- “American Graffiti” $115.0 ($601.1)
- “Papillon” $53.2 ($352.9)
- “The Way We Were” $49.9 ($352.2)
- “Magnum Force” $44.6 ($314.9)
- “Live and Let Die” $35.4 ($250.0)
- “Robin Hood” $32.0 ($225.9)
- “Paper Moon” $30.9 ($218.9)
- “Serpico” $27.2 ($192.0)
It is truly an eye-opening experience when you compare the top-10 domestic box office of 1973 to that of 2023 using inflation-adjusted numbers.
The combined inflation-adjusted top-10 domestic box office of 50 years ago is approximately $4.3 billion, which is significantly higher than the top-10 domestic box office of 2023, which is about $3.4 billion.
It was 50 years ago that a group of film school graduates set out to make artistic entertaining movies the likes of the legendary filmmakers that they admired most: John Ford, Howard Hawks, Frank Capra and other greats.
In my humble opinion, the list of 1973 movies, when compared to the list of 2023, is far superior in terms of substance, originality, artistry and wide-ranging popular appeal.
At its essence the focus of the entertainment industry used to be entertainment. It was the very reason the industry came to be and was able to flourish to the degree that it did.
So much appears to have been lost in this regard, and the stats seem to show it.
Almost all of the top movies of 1973 were actually groundbreaking creative achievements and at the same time were appealing to the public.
The top three titles, “The Exorcist,” “The Sting,” and “American Graffiti,” are still considered to be the best films of their respective genres, and they continue to have an impact on the culture to this very day.
There was a bright spot in the movie business in 2023. It came in the form of faith-based films, which met with unexpected success.
“His Only Son,” “Sound of Freedom,” and “After Death” all surpassed box-office expectations.
On the Fourth of July, “Sound of Freedom” opened ahead of Disney’s “Indiana Jones” installment. “His Only Son” opened with the No. 3 slot during its opening weekend. And “After Death” became the top-grossing documentary since 2019.
Another faith-based film, “Jesus Revolution,” which features “Frasier” star Kelsey Grammer as Southern California pastor Chuck Smith, made it to the third spot on its opening weekend.
I’m truly hoping that in the New Year the entertainment industry does some soul-searching and begins to make its way back home.
If not, I fear that the Hollywood nightmare is destined to be a recurring one.
James Hirsen, J.D., M.A., in media psychology, is a New York Times best-selling author, media analyst, and law professor. Visit Newsmax TV Hollywood. Read James Hirsen’s Reports — More Here.
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