The Flash was one of the most-hyped films on the 2023 summer release schedule. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said at CinemaCon that The Flash was the finest superhero flick he’d ever seen. All signs pointed to a $100 million or more domestic opening weekend.
Despite its first-place finish, the film was met with disinterest from many moviegoers on its opening weekend. It lead to a B cinema score and uninspiring exit ratings according to research firm PostTrak.
Even though after adjusting for inflation, Elemental’s opening weekend gross of $29.6 million was Pixar’s lowest three-day start ever. The bright side is that Elemental outperformed The Flash on Wednesday with $3.5 million, compared to $3.1 million.
The animated sequel Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, currently in its third week, took the top spot on Wednesday with $3.8 million. Increasing its domestic total to well over $294 million thanks to its heroic performance.
Six day domestic totals for The Flash were $69.5 million as of Wednesday, while Elemental earned $43.4 million. It will be interesting to see whether Elemental’s more favorable word of mouth makes for a tight fight or if The Flash can restore its No. 1 spot on Thursday.
This weekend Sony will have a tough choice between the anticipated $10-12 million opening of Spider-Man and the R-rated debut of Jennifer Lawrence’s No Hard Feelings. The film features the actress alongside Andrew Barth Feldman. It is the first in a series of summer bawdy comedies designed to bring the struggling genre back to the big screen.
