The Taylor Swift effect has proven to be both a blessing and a curse for cinema, with the industry celebrating the guaranteed box office bonanza that comes attached to The Eras Tour concert movie, while those in search of counter-programming have been left with slim pickings.
No less than five features have shifted their release dates in the face of the singer and occasional actress‘ impending descent upon multiplexes, while that’s even extended to John Cena’s action comedy Freelance being delayed by three weeks so it doesn’t have to compete with The Exorcist: Believer, which itself was the first production to blink in the face of the Swifties.
The latest projections from Box Office Pro do make it very simple to understand why everyone’s packing up and running away from The Eras Tour, though, seeing as it’s poised to earn more in its first weekend than the debts of all six of its remaining theatrical rivals combined dating from Sept. 22 to Swift’s Oct. 13 rollout.
At the lowest end of projections, action sequel EXPEND4BLES, Rogue One director Gareth Edwards’ ambitious new sci-fi The Creator, the wide expansion of Gamestop story Dumb Money, animated follow-up PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, slasher sequel Saw X, and the aforementioned Exorcist continuation are tracking for cumulative first-weekend hauls of $68 million. As for The Eras Tour? Well, it’s on course to ring up at least $96 million all on its lonesome.
Even at the top end, the six in question have the potential to crack a total of $104 million, with Swift still miles out in front should her film come anywhere close to $145 million. It’s her world now, and we’re all just living in it.