4. It Faced Too Much Competition
The first film was released on May 8, 2009, giving it a jump start on the other blockbusters of that year. Going into
Star Trek's opening weekend, the only potentially dangerous holdover was the critically panned
X-Men Origins: Wolverine, so moviegoers were hungry for a great theatrical experience. It was able to remain in the top five for about a month until
The Hangover came out that June.
Star Trek Into Darkness was released in the third weekend of May and already had stiff competition from the box office Godzilla known as Marvel Studios and a surprisingly strong outing by
The Great Gatsby.
Iron Man 3 has already grossed $346.3 million in the U.S. and
Gatsby - complete with
movie star Leonardo DiCaprio - has made $96.2 million (a respectable total for a character drama positioned during blockbuster season). Both of these films have also received positive word-of-mouth amongst moviegoers. Marvel's latest got the same "A" grade
Into Darkness got and
Gatsby has shaken off its mixed critical reception to become an audience favorite (84% in the Rotten Tomatoes audience poll).
The competition will only get tougher as two more franchise sequels hit theaters this Memorial Day weekend.
Fast and Furious 6 looks to continue the renewed success the series found when 2011's
Fast Five grossed $209.8 million domestically.
The Hangover Part III should also do solid business, as the first two movies are some of the most successful R-rated comedies of all-time. There's only so much money to go around (especially in this economy) and with so many options competing for audience's attention, one movie had to take a bit of a fall. Unfortunately for Paramount, it was
Star Trek Into Darkness.