Warner Bros. Shares Down After ‘The Flash’ Underperforms

Topline

Warner Bros. Discovery shares fell slightly on Tuesday morning, following a three-day opening weekend for The Flash—the latest in the DC superhero movie franchise—that failed to meet box office projections.

Warner Bros. Discovery shares fell slightly on Tuesday morning.

Key Facts

Shares for Warner Bros. Discovery fell nearly 2% to $12.58 Tuesday morning, shortly after the market opened.

The Flash—projected to earn an estimated $70 million in its opening weekend—brought in $55.1 million in domestic sales and another $75 million from 78 markets internationally, according to Box Office Mojo.

The movie’s opening weekend sales are the lowest for any DC film since Shazam! in 2019 grossed $53.5 million and finished with a lifetime gross of $140 million.

Despite falling short of projections by nearly $20 million, The Flash was still the No. 1 movie over the three-day weekend, finishing ahead of Elemental ($29.6 million), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ($27.3 million) and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts ($20.7 million).

Big Number

$200 million. That’s how much The Flash cost to make, according to the New York Times.

Tangent

Elemental had the lowest three-day debut for a Pixar film since Toy Story, which earned just $500,000 less than Elemental after opening to fewer theaters in 1995.

Key Background

The Flash, directed by Andy Muschietti, stars Ezra Miller, Sasha Calle and Michael Shannon, while Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton both reprised their roles as Batman.The Flash received a 67% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, including an 86% score from audiences.The film has faced controversy because of Miller, who faces harassment, disorderly conduct and burglary charges from several incidents. Miller—who joined the DC film universe in 2016—has since apologized for the behavior and promised to seek treatment for “complex mental health issues.”

Crucial Quote

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said he watched The Flash three times and added it was the “best superhero movie I’ve ever seen,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.