Clint Eastwood’s legal drama “Juror #2” is set to debut on Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming service Max on Dec. 20, adding to the controversy over the limited theatrical run for what could be the storied star and filmmaker’s final movie.
The Warner Bros. Pictures film, which was directed by Eastwood and stars Nicholas Hoult as a juror in a high-profile murder trial, had its world premiere last month at the American Film Institute’s festival in Hollywood.
The film was then released in a limited number of theaters starting Nov. 1, leading to outcry that the narrow run was an affront to the legendary actor and director’s career and also a missed opportunity for theaters to capitalize on the 94-year-old Eastwood’s popularity.
To date, the film has played in about 1% of all U.S. theaters and represents just 0.1% to 0.2% of all total show times for every movie in this time span, said Daniel Loria, senior vice president of box office business intelligence at the Boxoffice Co. By contrast, another adult-oriented film, “Conclave,” has made up about 5% to 6% of market share in U.S. show times over the same period, he said. The papal drama has so far garnered almost $28 million in worldwide box office.
Warner Bros. did not report box office figures for “Juror #2,” which reportedly played in only a few dozen U.S. cinemas.
“These types of films perform differently than they did in the pre-pandemic era,” Loria said. “But what we’ve seen from this type of market is that the right type of film can still connect with viewers and succeed on a limited to moderate level. The film was not made available to markets and theaters and parts of the country that would have turned out to see that movie.”
The studio had not publicly disclosed the streaming-first plan until recently, leading many Hollywood observers to question the decision. Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav has taken much heat since taking over the studio, in large part because of decisions to shelve movies such as “Batgirl” and “Coyote vs. Acme.” Those moves were widely seen as part of a larger strategic shift and cost-cutting effort.
The studio has pushed back on the notion that it did Eastwood dirty with its release strategy.
A studio spokesperson said “Juror #2” was always destined for a streaming release on Max, as deals were made for that at the beginning, and filmmakers were aware of and agreed to the plan. The AFI Fest premiere gave the movie a “prestige theatrical showcase” that highlighted Eastwood’s “pedigree and history,” the spokesperson said.
The studio and filmmakers had agreed to reconsider the option to first release the film in a limited theatrical run once the studio had screened the film, the spokesperson said. They added that the limited theatrical run was intended to generate word-of-mouth anticipation ahead of the Max debut.
The filmmakers were made aware of the limited theatrical release in mid-August, according to a person familiar with the matter but not authorized to comment publicly.
Eastwood’s decades-long career has yielded massive theatrical hits, such as “Million Dollar Baby” and “American Sniper,” though his 2021 film “Cry Macho” underperformed at the box office. However, reviews for “Juror #2” have been strong and Eastwood’s name recognition likely could have generated box office traffic, Loria said. “The Mule,” released in 2018, raked in almost $175 million worldwide on a modest budget of $50 million.
“Not everything is going to be ‘American Sniper,’ ” he said. “You can have movies like ‘The Mule’ that are going to be out there and find an audience. But in order to find the audience, … you have to make your movies findable.”
“Juror #2” has managed to find an audience in countries overseas where it did open in theaters, including France. The film has generated $9.6 million in international box office, according to Box Office Mojo.