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Disney Officially Pulls Ridley Scott’s Sci-Fi Movie From Over 3K Theaters
Ridley Scott's long-awaited return to science fiction, The Dog Stars, has become a significant commercial failure, leading Disney to withdraw the film from the vast majority of cinemas after just one month. This underperformance is particularly noteworthy given Scott's stature as a legendary filmmaker and the film's substantial budget of approximately $100 million.
The film, starring Jacob Elordi and Josh Brolin, opened across 3,300 domestic theatres but experienced a devastating collapse, dropping to just 100 locations by its fifth week and placing 32nd at the box office by that stage. It has grossed less than $40 million globally against its $100 million budget, with domestic earnings falling short of $15 million. Critics gave it a modest 40% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with reviewers criticising its derivative premise, slow pacing, and listless narrative despite its visually impressive cinematography.
In short
- Ridley Scott's The Dog Stars pulled from 3,000 theatres after box office collapse
- Earned under $40 million against $100 million budget; 40% on Rotten Tomatoes
- Part of Scott's recent streak of underperforming films; may find audience streaming later
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Disney faced an unsustainable financial and critical situation that required decisive action. With the film grossing less than £40 million globally against a £100 million budget, plus significant marketing expenditure, maintaining a theatrical presence would only increase losses with virtually no prospect of recovery. The dramatic collapse from 3,300 to 100 theatres in five weeks reflected genuine audience rejection, and the 40% critical rating offered little hope that word-of-mouth would turn the tide. In such circumstances, Disney's responsibility lay in limiting further damage and reallocating screen space to films with commercial viability.
The case against
Ridley Scott deserves patience befitting his legendary status and artistic vision, particularly for an ambitious science fiction film whose visual sophistication may appeal to a dedicated audience developing appreciation over time. A 40% critical score, whilst modest, hardly constitutes a complete creative failure, and theatrical experience matters fundamentally for visually-driven cinema. Pulling the film so decisively after mere weeks removes any possibility of organic word-of-mouth momentum or audience reconsideration. The marginal cost of keeping a prestige film in limited release hardly compares to the broader reputational value of demonstrating faith in major filmmakers.
Explained simply
Ridley Scott is a celebrated film director known for creating influential science fiction works, including Blade Runner and Alien. The Dog Stars is his latest film, a science fiction project starring Jacob Elordi and Josh Brolin, produced with a budget of approximately $100 million.
In the film industry, such substantial budgets from major studios typically reflect confidence in a project's potential, particularly when led by an established director like Scott. Films that fail to deliver at the box office can result in significant financial losses for studios.
Critics gave the film mixed reviews, citing issues such as derivative storytelling, slow pacing and narrative weakness, whilst praising its cinematography. The film's box office performance has been poor relative to its substantial production budget.