Disney’s Wish hit the theaters just in time for Thanksgiving, but its box office numbers are anything but a dream come true. This animated fantasy movie is the latest Disney project to struggle at the box office, but what’s the reason behind its disappointing $49 million global gross?
Lack of Promo
The cast of Wish, including its leading stars Ariana DeBose and Chris Pine, had very little time to promote the film because it came out only two weeks after the end of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
Mixed Reception
The critics haven’t been kind to Wish after it came out, and the film currently holds a pretty low rating of 50% on Rotten Tomatoes. Disney wanted to use Wish to mark its 100th anniversary by tying together several major themes from most Disney films into one, but this led to a story that leaned too heavily into nostalgia and had nothing new to say.
Tough Competition
Wish finished third behind The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and Napoleon during its debut week, and failed to meet its projections with a disappointing $49 million earned globally. Songbirds & Snakes was definitely its toughest competition after becoming a huge word-of-mouth hit and exceeding its box office projections.
