Things are not looking good for Luc Besson's sci-fi epic Valerian and the City of a Thousand
Planets.
The expensive film was obliterated at the domestic box office in its opening weekend,
falling in fifth place with only $17 million against a reported $180 million production
budget.
Considering the weight Besson's name carries with sci-fi fans, many may be surprised to
hear that his most recent outing had that much trouble finding an audience.
However, there were actually quite a few warning signs that Valerian would fail.
Here are the real reasons why Valerian was an intergalactic disappointment at the box
office.
Little-known source material
Valerian is based on the French comic strip which ran from 1967 to 2010.
Besson had been reading the comic since he was a child, and dreamed of adapting it into
a film for years.
But he had to wait until he had the right technology and experience to pull off the
comic's unique vision.
Despite its wide readership overseas, though, the comic never quite found an audience in
the United States.
So, when the title for Besson's passion project popped up on potential audiences' feeds, a
lot of people weren't as familiar with the comic characters as some of those other superhero
stories that tend to tear up the box office.
The familiarity factor that's such a draw for similar adventure movies was gone right
from the start.
Story confusion
Compounding the confusion was the fact that Valerian seemed to offer audiences vague marketing
materials that didn't little to explain what Valerian was actually about.
The previews focused heavily on the film's style over its content and focused on off-putting
aspects of the story.
"You flirt.
I smile."
None of the trailers took the time to go through the reality of the threat against Alpha or
to discuss why Valerian and Laureline were chosen to stop it, which made the previews
feel hollow and unimpressionable.
"We need the two of you to be the guardians of our future."
While the marketing might've drawn in a few viewers who'd want to see Besson's visual
spectacle unfold, focusing entirely on the style over substance in the marketing wasn't
necessarily a smart choice.
Since a lot of would-be audience members aren't familiar with the comic series, that lack
of understanding may have just been a turn-off at the ticket booth.
Ho-hum reviews
Some well-established sci-fi worlds have been able to pull in both dedicated and casual
fans alike, while others have struggled to find the mass market appeal necessary to make
up their huge budgets.
As with any movie with an unusual premise, good reviews can be a huge boost to creating
audience interest when there's not already-established fan-base in place.
With Valerian, though, the critical love line wasn't quite there.
Some reviews panned the leads for not having chemistry and called the story empty, with
the impressive visuals being singled out as a lone point of positivity for the film.
Those middling reviews were hardly enough to bring in sci-fi skeptics who'd maybe been
on the fence about seeing the movie.
Up-and-coming actors
Although Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne are both well known amidst industry circles, neither
have established themselves as bankable blockbuster stars just yet.
DeHaan is best known for his indie film appearances, while Delevingne only recently made the switch
from modeling into the movie star business.
Even those popcorn flicks they have appeared in -- The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Suicide
Squad, respectively -- were largely disappointments and did nothing to prove their profitability
or earn them household name recognition.
Stiff competition
The opening weekend for Valerian was packed with alternative options for the theater-going
crowd, including Christopher Nolan's widely praised war epic Dunkirk.
The film offered the visual dynamism Valerian promised, and it had gripping true story subject
matter at the center.
Meanwhile, the R-rated ensemble comedy Girls' Trip offered viewers a chance to let loose
and enjoy some adult humor, which may have been a draw-in for those that are experiencing
a bit of superhero summer fatigue.
The film also came out just two weeks after Marvel's juggernaut Spider-Man: Homecoming
and just one week after the trilogy-ender War for the Planet of the Apes.
While both films saw their box office performances pushed beyond initial expectations due to
strong reviews, it was easy to see that they'd have legs long past their release dates.
The combined array of those four other options might have given theatergoers some pause about
choosing to see Valerian, too.
Creative salvation?
A number of different figures have been thrown around for Valerian's budget, but they all
point to one thing — it was high.
The film, which has been reported as the most expensive French production of all time, likely
cost somewhere around $200 million including marketing.
"Yeah, well, time flies when you're having fun."
That means it'll require a pretty stellar comeback in order to make a profit.
However, there is still some hope for Valerian.
Like many domestic flops in the summer of 2017, the international box office could be
a savior.
The movie is expected to do big business in France, where viewers are familiar with the
comics, and will continue to be rolled out in international territories throughout the
summer.
The best hope for the film, however, comes from Besson's creative method of financing
it.
Tax credits are one of the film's first helpers, with estimates saying that they bump the film's
cost down by $50 million.
The movie is also said to be covering significant parts of its budget through equity financing
and foreign pre-sales.
Still, the slow start for Valerian is not a good sign for the film in the long run,
and is an even worse sign for Besson's already planned follow-up films.
The movie will have to do significant business overseas in order to be considered a success,
and it seems unlikely that it will be able to break its perception as a box office flop.
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