The movie collected $26 million from 4,165 North American theatres. Given its production budget above $100 million, those ticket sales wouldn’t be much to celebrate in pre-pandemic times but isn’t a bad result considering the present situation.
Overseas, ‘Free Guy’ amassed $22.5 million for a global tally of $51 million.
‘Free Guy’ marks an interesting test for the film exhibition industry because it’s playing exclusively in theatres, which is a rarity these days. Many high-profile films that premiered during the pandemic, such as Marvel’s ‘Black Widow’ and ‘The Suicide Squad‘, were available on streaming platforms on the same day as their theatrical debuts. The few films offered only in theatres, like ‘F9’, Emily Blunt and John Krasinski‘s follow-up ‘A Quiet Place Part II’ and ‘G.I. Joe’ origin story ‘Snake Eyes’, were each sequels in popular film franchises, unlike ‘Free Guy’, which is based on an original concept and isn’t part of an existing movie universe.
Though COVID-19 is undoubtedly deterring people from visiting their local multiplex, ‘Free Guy’ — which is directed by Shawn Levy (‘Stranger Things’, ‘Night at the Museum’) and co-starring Jodie Comer and Taika Waititi — had several factors working in its favour. Thanks to strong reviews and an “A” CinemaScore from audiences, it enjoyed positive word-of-mouth over the weekend. The PG-13 film also benefitted because it appealed to older males, a demographic that has appeared to be less wary about returning to the big screen.
This box-office success comes just after leading man Ryan Reynolds announced that the sequel of the film has been green-lit.
The story centres on Guy (Reynolds), a bank teller who discovers that he’s actually an NPC (non-player character) inside a brutal, open-world video game, subsequently deciding to become the hero of the story, by saving his friends from getting deleted by the game’s creator.
Reynolds took to Twitter to share the update on the sequel.
“Aaaannnnd after 3 years messaging #FreeGuy as an original IP movie, Disney confirmed today they officially want a sequel. Woo hoo!! #irony. If it isn’t called, ‘Albuquerque Boiled Turkey’ we’ve failed,” the actor wrote.
“Free Guy” is based on the script penned by Matt Lieberman and Zak Penn.
Actors Dwayne Johnson, John Krasinski, Hugh Jackman, Channing Tatum, Joe Keery, Tina Fey and Lil Rel Howery round out the cast. Chris Evans also makes a cameo in the film.
