9 Movies That Bombed Twice

Many films set up to release in March 2020 had their opportunities cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One in particular that was most unfortunate was seeing a Pixar property crumpling under the weight of the real world situation.

Onward is your standard affair of Pixar’s brand of touching, family-friendly fun that follows the story of two elf brothers as they journey in search of a gem to revive their deceased father. Despite perhaps not being the most memorable compared to Pixar’s otherwise stunning portfolio, its strong leading duo of Chris Pratt and Tom Holland should’ve guaranteed great numbers.

After only around three weeks since the movie debuted however, most cinemas around the world found themselves closed. The film made $141m box office in this time, falling short of its production budget by about $30-60m.

In July 2020, UK theatres trialled opening their doors and Onward was on the list of those offered to keen and brave cinema-goers. Unfortunately it was too little and far too late, and the extra few thousand dollars weren’t significant enough to fill that remaining financial dent. People were too busy rightfully discussing the future of the institution of the cinema rather than flocking to gather together to see a middle-of-the-road Pixar romp.

Onward is Pixar’s second ever financial failure. But, unlike 2015’s The Good Dinosaur, I suppose it’s at least got a good excuse