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'Passengers' Bombs At The Box Office; Divisive Plot Doesn't Satisfy Critics, Viewers [Spoilers]

'Passengers' Bombs At The Box Office; Divisive Plot Doesn't Satisfy Critics, Viewers [Spoilers]

S. Turla

"Passengers," the science fiction adventure movie directed by Morten Tyldum, performed poorly at the box office. "Passengers" earned $30.1 million after a six-day opening, which failed to meet Sony's predicted $30 million to $40 million.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film's four-day weekend earned an estimated $22.7 million after 3,478 runs. "We are just getting started," shared Josh Greenstein, Sony's worldwide marketing and distribution chief. He added, "Sunday was really the first day the true adult audience was available. We have a very entertaining popcorn movie, and I think we'll end up at a very healthy number."

Movie Pilot tried to figure out why Tyldum's film didn't perform as strongly as other titles released at the same time. The online website reported that with a budget of $100 million, "Passengers" needed at least $300 million to see a profit in cinemas.

It was also revealed that Sony gave Jennifer Lawrence (who played Aurora Lane) a whopping $20 million. Meanwhile, her co-star Chris Pratt, who portrayed Jim Preston, only received $12 million.

Sadly, the star power of both Lawrence and Pratt were not enough to get viewers into cinemas. "Passengers" garnered lukewarm reviews with a 7.1/10 on IMDB and only a 41/100 on Metacritic.

On the other hand, critics and viewers alike expressed their concerns over the film's controversial plot point. Viewers who have yet to see the movie are advised to skip this portion of the article as it contains several spoilers for "Passengers. "

The film's official trailer gave viewers the feeling that the movie would feature a romance set in space, but those who have seen "Passengers" in theaters were not too keen on a certain plot twist. Upon viewing, it was revealed that Jim decides to bring Aurora out of her induced hibernation 90 years before her scheduled awakening. By doing this, he indirectly has a hand in her slow but eventual death.

Jon Spaiths, the film's writer, tried to address these concerns. He shared, "The movie looks, evenhandedly, at the dilemma everybody was in. I think putting good people in impossible circumstances makes for fascinating storytelling."

He concluded, "It's about forgiveness and it's about taking an issue from a relationship and then putting it to the extreme. Him giving her the choice at the end is super important. That's when it becomes a true love story. Love is not selfish, or is about need. It's about the other person."

 

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