‘Matrix 4’ And ‘Sing 2’ Top Vudu SVOD Charts

The Matrix Resurrections was tops this weekend at Vudu, even if its triumph may be short-lived. It’s currently 11th among movies at Amazon, fifth at iTunes, sixth on Google, third on Google and 15th at Vudu as of this moment. Yes, that’s an unusual discrepancy, with Sing 2 and Ghostbusters: Afterlife currently holding court at the top of the various platform charts. Either way, Matrix Resurrections can at least boast of briefly being #1 on at least one relevant chart. The film arrived on PVOD ($25 to rent in HD, $30 in 4K) this past Tuesday, about a month after its theatrical opening day. While we may never know how many opted to watch the film on HBO Max during that first month of domestic availability, the theatrical result was nothing less than grim. 

The film grossed just $36.8 million in North American theaters, a miserable (especially by Christmas standards) 1.73x its $21.2 million Wed-Sun debut. The film earned less overall than the $37.35 million Wed-Sun debut of The Matrix over Easter weekend 1999. It earned less than the $37.5 million opening day ($42.5 million if you count previews) of The Matrix Reloaded in May 2003. And it sold about as many domestic tickets overall as the $24.31 million opening day ($36.9 million adjusted-for-inflation) of The Matrix Revolutions in November 2003. It earned less than Keanu Reeves’ mostly forgotten Christmas 2013 bomb 47 Ronin ($38 million from a $20 million Wed-Sun debut) and sold fewer tickets than the respective opening weekends of Constantine ($30 million in 2005) and The Day the Earth Stood Still ($30 million in 2008).  

Regardless of my feelings on the film, an interesting epilogue and another example of a self-loathing legacy sequel (Jurassic World and Scream come to mind), its theatrical failure isn’t a surprise. Covid and HBO Max aside, The Matrix Resurrections was an attempt to revive a franchise that was only universally embraced the first time out. I adore the initial sequels, but Matrix Reloaded got whacked with post-debut disapproval from general audiences and Matrix Revolutions plunged 43% from its predecessor’s $742 million cume. Not only was this a franchise that didn’t end on good terms, but it was also a follow-up to a trilogy where large segments of moviegoers didn’t even bother to see the threequel in theaters. Compared to “popular right now” franchise installments like Sing 2 and Spider-Man: No Way Home, it never had a prayer.  

It’s no secret that the Wachowskis initially had little interest in a fourth Matrix, and that Warner Bros. initially considered a reboot starring Michael B. Jordan. It’s no secret, as it’s right there in the movie as “subtext made text” dialogue, that Lana Wachowski agreed to write and direct partially so that nobody else would get their mitts on her prized (and deeply personal) franchise. Granted, the story she wrote, about folks finding a sliver of happiness even after the battle is lost and the world is doomed, certainly resonated in today’s end-times environment. But the theatrical result suggests that her reluctance to go back to the Matrix was one shared by most moviegoers. Because, once again, not every previously successful blockbuster is an endlessly monetizable franchise. And not every decades-old hit can justify a Force Awakens-style relaunch.  

Sing 2 is continuing to hit high notes here and there, with $268 million worldwide on a $85 million budget and robust VOD business reportedly on par with Trolls: World Tour (which earned $100 million in the first 18 days back in April 2020). I am amused by reports (so says Puck’s Matt Belloni) of Universal offering checks to the stars (Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, etc.) to buy out theoretical box office bonuses. The Secret Life of Pets 2 dropped 60% domestic and 52% ($160 million domestic and $420 million in 2019) compared to The Secret Life of Pets ($368 million/$875 million in 2016). A $145 million domestic/$305 million worldwide finish would be a franchise retention (Sing earned $271 million domestic and $634 million worldwide in 2016) on par with Pets 2. 

While it is obviously about keeping talent happy (and avoiding a repeat of Disney’s litigation issues with Black Widow), I’d argue that Sing 2’s likely $300 million-plus global finish might have been where it might have ended up sans Covid. You can certainly picture Universal making that case, but maybe it was worth whatever it cost them to make sure everyone showed up bright and happy to Sing 3 or whatever else comes next for this Garth Jennings-shepherded animated franchise. It is not unlike when Warner Bros. paid out best-case-scenario box office bonuses for their 2021 theatrical slate (which debuted concurrently on HBO Max), which resulted in the likes of Hugh Jackman and Denzel Washington getting a lot more money out of Reminiscence and The Little Things had they relied on even non-Covid box office results.