Memorial Day Box Office Sinks

After box office duds “Baywatch” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,” Hollywood sinks to its worst Memorial Day weekend since 1999.

Clay Enos/Warner Bros. Entertainment via AP – Wonder Woman
Gal Gadot portrays the warrior princess.

Disney’s “Pirates” led the box office with $78.5 million, 30 percent less than its 2011 predecessor. Meanwhile, Paramount’s negatively reviewed “Baywatch” came in third with $23.1 million, less than half of its production budget.

The Memorial Day weekend continued May’s mediocre box office sales. The month started strong with “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” but was hindered by box office flops “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” and “Alien: Covenant,” which also made 30 percent less than its prequel.

Industry insiders predict this trend may continue throughout the summer and that Hollywood’s overreliance on franchises are to blame, the Los Angeles Times reports.

“Some of the tent poles are just not as strong this year,” Chris Aronson, head of domestic distribution for 20th Century Fox, told the paper. “‘Pirates?’ It’s the fifth one. ‘Transformers?’ It’s the fifth one.”

Some industry experts are predicting summer box office sales may fall by as much as 10 percent from last year.

This year’s box office sales are still out performing 2016’s, however. Thanks to earlier hits like “Logan” and “Get Out,” 2017’s full-year box office is still about 2 percent higher than last year.

Upcoming blockbusters may turn the tide as well. The highly anticipated, Gal Godot-starring “Wonder Woman,” is receiving positive reviews and is predicted to gross up to $90 million on its opening weekend. Christopher Nolan’s World War II epic “Dunkirk” is also expected to make box office waves.