With less than seven weeks left til 2017 comes to a close, one of the final big tentpole releases of the year arrives in theaters after years of expectation and uncertainty. Warner Bros.' DC Comics superhero team-up movie Justice League hopes that lots of work and rework has produced a picture fans will love, critics will appreciate, and mainstream audiences will embrace the way they did Wonder Woman this past summer.
Justice League appears set to open in the $110+ million range domestically, and another $220 million internationally, for an estimated $330+ million worldwide. If the early positive critical reactions on social media, the positive word of mouth from audiences who attended early special screenings, and the final marketing blitz this week help propel word of mouth higher headed into Friday, then the domestic tally could easily top $125 million while the foreign receipts tally up to perhaps $230+ million.
That potential $345+ million would certainly leave Warner grinning ear to ear, but the more moderate $330+ million estimate is still good enough that a decent multiplier plus the later territory openings would suggest a final cume north of $900 million. The $345+ million would put it squarely in $1 billion territory, assuming a decent multiplier.
The big question is less about the opening weekend than the legs it will demonstrate in weeks ahead, since early wait-and-see sentiment among some portion of audiences is a realistic possibility -- and not unreasonable for those who disliked some of the earlier DCEU releases -- but second and third weekend attendance will be strong if word of mouth is positive and families start showing up bringing their younger kids. That's a demographic that was less inclined to turn out in droves or offer much repeat business for Suicide Squad and Batman v Superman, but they'll will feel much more at home watching a 1 hour 59 minute action-packed, often amusing superhero movie that offers all ages a great time.
While it's not likely to score the same level of praise and audience love Wonder Woman enjoyed earlier this year, there's no doubt Justice League is headed for higher audience scores and more sustained, stronger weekly holds compared to Batman v Superman. And with audiences still basking in the afterglow of Thor: Ragnarok, the upbeat sentiment toward that film plus the overall positive reception of all superhero releases this year could be a factor in Justice League's favor as well.
I would guess it earns an A- Cinemascore from mainstream audiences, and that the press will respond positively to the fact the film largely addresses the primary complaints and concerns about Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad, while overcoming much advance negative press coverage and concerns about production, to deliver a thoroughly enjoyable superhero adventure that has much more than works than doesn't.
At the box office, I think those factors will translate into a $120 million opening, and then a strong hold on the second weekend and decent legs going forward as word spreads that this is generally considered by most viewers to be the second-best film of the DCEU (behind Wonder Woman). It'll also benefit from a holiday bump on the second weekend out in North American theaters. So my expectation is a domestic gross north of $300 million, and a foreign tally topping $600 million. Meaning a worldwide haul of at least $900 million. Whether it pushes past $1 billion will depend on whether it can open higher than mid-range predictions and stretch that final multiplier toward 2.8-3x range.
Worst case, my expectation would be a $110 million opening at home, $210 million abroad, and maybe a 2.5x multiplier, which would see the film finishing around $800 million. That would mean audiences fail to turn out in bigger numbers on opening weekend, word of mouth is mixed to so-so, and that it doesn't hold particularly well even on Thanksgiving weekend, while it enjoys no added boost from the later territory openings internationally. This is very unlikely, and a more realistic modest performance shy of the average estimates would put the film closer to at least $850 million or so.
I'm going to wait to make further predictions until we get some opening weekend receipt totals, but for now my ranges are $850 million low-end, $900+ million average, and $1.1 billion high-end. The reason I'm not expecting a highest-end far past the $1 billion range is, everything in the marketplace will hit a brick wall when Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens in about five weeks. But that's a long enough time for a leggy Justice League to build momentum and make a run at $1 billion, if everything goes well for Warner.
Now, let's get to what your all anxious to find out -- why do I think Justice League will enjoy a positive reaction from audiences and critics? Read on for my full review!
Fans have eagerly and anxiously awaited the arrival of Justice League, with some concerned the film will stray too far from director Zack Snyder's original vision and previous DCEU films Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, while others fear the new movie won't move far enough away from the prior approach. Mainstream audiences, meanwhile, just want to know if this movie is going to leave them walking out of the theater feeling they had a pretty good time and excited for what comes next.
I'm happy to say, fans on both sides of the DCEU debate will get plenty of what they hope for, while mainstream audiences are definitely going to be perhaps the most all-around pleased and enthusiastic about Justice League. It retains enough of the DNA of the previous films to be recognizable as their successor, while carving out a new space closer to the tone and style of action-adventure superheroism found in Wonder Woman. And it offers average movie-goers the sort of chest-swelling sense of heroism and pure joyful entertainment they love and reward with their hard-earned dollars at the box office.
In short, everyone will have enough reason to be happy to make Justice League a respectable follow-up to Wonder Woman as a DCEU movie that fans of all stripes can rally behind. Meanwhile, critics who insisted Warner and DC Films needed to heed the warnings and complaints demanding a change of course to appeal to a wider set of tastes and tell more concise stories will appreciate seeing a film that was not only reworked to do just that, but manages to overcome a lot of obstacles to actually work pretty well and prove that -- regardless of my own love of Batman v Superman -- the complaints and suggestions ultimately resulted in a film far more fans and mainstream audiences can fully appreciate.
Fast paced and with its eye always on moving the story forward, Justice League balances frequent humor with equally frequent character exchanges and development to maintain dramatic tension and avoid worrying that segment of fandom who constantly fear "too much humor and fun." While obviously some story elements and subplots were left on the cutting room floor, the honest truth is the final product doesn't suffer for it -- and, like it or not, that means those deleted scenes didn't serve the main narrative enough to make themselves mandatory for inclusion. The result is a streamlined approach to storytelling that trusts the audience to fill in some gaps for themselves so that the story can maintain momentum.
This speaks to an important point I'd like to mention to fans who worry Justice League is too short, or that the loss of several scenes will compromise the integrity of the characterizations and plotting. If a story has added elements that are fun asides and interesting subplots a sizable segment of fandom will enjoy, but which when removed don't really alter the main story or reduce the main character arcs, and if the final cut of the film without those scenes still feels like it has all of the right parts and doesn't suffer a sense of missing narrative or inadequate characterization, then that means those deleted scenes and subplots -- however fun and cool they may be for fandom -- aren't crucial to the film and should probably be removed.
I love the "Knightmare" sequence from Batman v Superman, and appreciate the inclusion of the reveal that other superhumans -- Cyborg, Flash, and Aquaman -- exist in the world. And for an Ultimate Cut on Blu-ray, those scenes are great and worth including. For the theatrical version, however, were those scenes actually necessary to the main story? No. Could Justice League and other films have been created just fine without those scenes being included in Batman v Superman? Yes. Removing those scenes, then, likewise means some other scenes could be shortened or omitted, too (like Wonder Woman watching finding and watching the videos of the other heroes). A post-credit scene could've shown Bruce obtaining a file about other meta-humans, establishing in 25 seconds the background to set up the search for other heroes in Justice League.
Losing all of these scenes, then, would've saved almost 10 total minutes of screen time. Likewise, some trimming of the car chase sequence (Batman puts a tracker on the truck, so why chase it and have a running gun battle in the street instead of waiting til it was delivered to its destination and then stealing it there -- which is what he winds up doing anyway?) would've saved a few more minutes. My point? It was possible to assemble a roughly 2 hour 40 minute theatrical cut of Batman v Superman that retained most of the highly important scenes about Clark's investigation into Batman and the details of why the world thought Superman was guilty of crimes against humanity in Africa, while losing scenes that didn't truly drive the main narrative. Sure, we as fans love the Knightmare and car chase, but I think audiences and critics might've responded better to the film without them.
These points speak to the smart decisions Justice League makes about delivering a leaner, meaner DCEU story. The story doesn't suffer because of the shorter runtime and faster pace, nor do characters miss their important moments and interactions. Wanting a longer film just because fans enjoy spending more time in this world we love so much is understandable, but it's also important to understand that lack of serving those pure fan interests doesn't make short runtimes or faster pacing a bad thing or a disservice to artistic vision.
I'm sure we'll get an eventual home entertainment release of a slightly longer version of Justice League, since I know of a few deleted scenes that provide some subplot that fans will enjoy but which won't extend the runtime too terribly much. There's anything wrong with a theatrical cut that's shorter and faster paced, as long as it's not at the expense of story and character, which was arguably the case for Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad to some extent, but isn't a problem here since the theatrical cut works very well.
The cast all deliver gangbusters here. Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman is every bit as charismatic and commanding as she was in her previous two cinematic appearances. Ben Affleck's Batman is still a dark and moody guy, but he's trying to overcome his past cynicism toward other heroes and has reached a deep introspective conclusion about the life he's led. Ray Fisher's Cyborg is a standout as the unofficial heart of the team, since his own arc is one of initial reluctance and tension giving way to the necessity of fighting evil and eventually to heroic inspiration.
Jason Momoa is as perfect and awe-inspiring as Aquaman as I said he would be starting way back in 2012 when I first began banging the drum for him to take on the role (yes I'm shamelessly plugging my amazing predicting/suggestive powers). And Ezra Miller's Flash is the face of hopeful, eager innocence that makes even an old warhorse like Batman believe something special can really be done with this team. The supporting cast -- from returning characters to new ones -- are all in top form, too.
Did I leave anybody out? Hmm. Let's just say that fans and audiences who felt they'd yet to see a fully formed embodiment of Superman on the big screen will have much to rejoice about when it's all said and done.
(Speaking of "all said and done," don't walk out of the theater until all of the credits are completely finished and the house lights come up -- I won't spoil how many after-credit scenes there are, but trust me that it's worth staying to find out).
A word about the visuals and effects in Justice League. First of all, it looks great and has a wide array of colors and use of light versus use of shadows, retaining much of the visual aesthetic from previous DCEU releases but expanding on them. I absolutely loved the Gotham City scenes in particular, as well as the Speed Force sequences and Atlantian underwater visuals. Having seen the film three times on various types of screens, the final time was at the world premiere in Los Angeles this week where I got to (finally) see it at the Dolby Theatre with full Dolby Vision laser projection and Dolby Atmos.
If you read my reviews then you probably know I'm obsessed with the technical aspects of how to view cinema, especially color and contrast ratios (I'm colorblind, so these things have added importance to my ability to see certain elements on screen and to appreciate 3D properly) and an appropriately awesome sound system. There is no better theatrical experience than Dolby Cinema, because the colors and contrast are quite simply impossible for other formats to replicate. With Justice League, the changes in color from one location to another, and as certain villainous events unfold, work as signals of thematic and tonal shifts during the story, and a lot of moments rely on clarity within depth of shadow and darkness, and seeing it on a smaller screen or one with lesser quality projection and sound will mean you miss things in the movie.
Steppenwolf is fine as a CGI-rendered villain, but this is one of things you're going to hear a lot of people understandably complain about. Ciarán Hinds provides a splendidly smug, self-entitled tone to the villain's voice, and while his motivations are the basic "evildoer who wants to conquer the world because he craves power" variety found in so many superhero movies and action films, it was a mistake to give him a completely CGI face and body. Hinds should've played the role in makeup and a costume, and then afterward the VFX could've enhanced him as necessary without turning him into essentially a video game character. Since I like Hinds' performance so much, it was a shame that the visuals didn't live up to it; but in the end it's a minor annoyance and rather than detract much from the overall film experience, it's more a case of a missed opportunity to enhance it further.
The score by Danny Elfman is one of my favorite superhero scores. He takes elements of both old and new films, to create the concept of the first legacy score for a superhero film. Those who think nostalgia has no place in superhero movies need to remind themselves when these characters were created, and how much fans expect adherence to 80 year old story concepts, origins, and costumes, not to mention fans demanding to see their favorite story ideas and characters represented in ways reflecting this and that decades-old stories and iconic moments. Music is no different, and there's a perfectly fair reason to interpret the musical themes and score of a superhero film through the entire history of that character's live-action existence. Elfman composes something new for each, and the rest of the score likewise is exciting and fresh and speaks to the historic moment on hand in Justice League. I was especially thrilled and awe-struck by the way he used Wonder Woman's theme in a new orchestral composition that finally renders it as fully epic and transcendentally inspirational as possible.
Zack Snyder is among my personal favorite filmmakers, and I am obviously a huge fan of his work. Justice League is probably his final film for the DCEU, but it's a wonderful bookend to his launch of this entire new era of DC films back in 2013. He and Deborah Snyder put their hearts and souls into the DCEU, and for years to come we'll reap the benefits for their commitment to bringing this shared world to life. I look forward to that eventual longer cut of the film, and if you have any doubts we'll get it, just remember Warner is fully aware how many fans want to see it and would pay the extra money for it.
Joss Whedon created two of the most successful, greatest superhero team-up movies of all time for Marvel Studios. Warner and DC are lucky that he wanted to work on their films now, and that he was able to complete Justice League when the Snyders suffered a heartbreaking tragedy. Justice League is Zack's film, but it has the undeniable touch and spirit of Whedon's characterizations and ability to bring a blended tone to the final edit of the film. It would be a remarkable thing if this merger of top filmmakers from both the MCU and DCEU allowed fans to finally stop grumbling and fighting over personal preferences about one set of heroes or another, and finally understand how and why one another appreciate some different approaches while all sharing an abiding love of comic books and the superhero film genre.
Likewise, when DC fans walk out of theaters with a big grin on their faces and see audiences cheering these heroes and critics being much kinder to Justice League than they were to some prior DCEU entries, I hope fans of both Marvel and DC can overcome some of their differences and hostilities and better appreciate one another's personal love of different degrees of drama, seriousness, and humor in these films. Various characters speak to each of us differently, some more than others depending on who you are; and so maybe you don't appreciate or enjoy a certain tonal approach when it's applied over there, but can appreciate it more when you see how it works to enhance and create broader emotional angles for storytelling with characters you do relate to.
The themes of sacrifice and overcoming our own fears and limitations to become part of something greater, to believe instead of doubt, and to ask others to follow our example -- or for us to follow theirs -- are prominent in Justice League. As I mentioned earlier, we see this play out in Cyborg's arc from start to finish, but it is likewise reflected in every character's path in one way or another. How they come to recognize this in each other and in themselves, and how they come to terms with it and learn to work together so the whole team is greater than the sum of its parts, is a solid narrative arc that manages to play out prominently in a briskly paced action-driven production.
That's where editing was key, understanding the need to trim away what doesn't squarely serve the needs of advancing the story and letting the right combination of moments large and small build upon one another so each moment serves a distinctive purpose, and none wind up wasted. So it is not unlike the characters themselves and their team, as the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.
Justice League is like a two-hour live-action superhero cartoon made for kids as well as adults. It's a reminder that we all fell in love with these characters when we were kids, thrilled by their comic book exploits and their cartoon incarnations, eager to see them come fully to life some day on the big screen. That day has finally come, and Justice League is sending a message loud and clear that DC is happy to welcome all fan aboard.
Box office figures and tallies based on data via Box Office Mojo , Rentrak, and TheNumbers.
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