Warner and New Line opened Collateral Beauty as counter-programming to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, targeting older audiences.
The drama about a grieving ad executive was panned by most critics, and only managed a paltry $7 million debut for a fourth place finish.
That’s a rough start for the picture and continues star Will Smith’s bumpy period at the box office. The actor scored with last summer’s “Suicide Squad,” which was also slammed by critics, but found large audiences.
However, Smith recently struck out with several flops, Focus, After Earth, and last year’s Concussion.
This latest failure raises questions about Smith’s choice of roles and degree of popular appeal, as he used to be one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars.
Collateral Beauty, which cost $36 million, was co-financed with Village Roadshow. The opening weekend crowd skewed female and older viewers. Women comprised 59% of the audience and 58% of the ticket buyers clocked in over the age of 35.
Jeff Goldstein, Warner domestic distribution president, acknowledged that the poor reviews hurt the film, but stressed that its A-minus CinemaScore indicated that audiences were enjoying Collateral Beauty.
