5 Reasons 'Pan' Got the Hook at Box Office

Profitability looks like Neverland for Warner Bros.’ big-budget family film “Pan,” which bombed domestically with just over $15 million in its debut this weekend, roughly one-tenth of its $150 million production budget.

Compounding the bad news Sunday were soft overseas numbers for “Pan” — $20 million from 52 markets, or 40 percent of its foreign run. That makes it clear the film’s overseas haul is not going to offset the domestic shortfall and over-sized budget of the PG-rated origin tale directed by Joe Wright and starring Hugh Jackman, Garrett Hedlund and Amanda Seyfried.

“Pan” was originally conceived as a tentpole with franchise potential by the studio and its backers RatPac-Dune Entertainment and Berlanti Productions. But the fact that the studio in April shifted it from a July release date to the fall was not a sign of confidence.

Their assessment was correct, but “Pan” wasn’t able to compete much better in the fall than it would have in summer and here are five reasons why:

Also Read: 'Pan' Peters Out, 'The Walk' Wobbles as 'The Martian' Repeats at Box Office

Low-Wattage Starpower
Jackman might be star-enough to drive an established Marvel franchise like “X-Men” at the box office, but “Pan” was a tougher sell. Neither Jackman, nor Hedlund, Seyfried or newcomer Levi Miller could get fans excited enough to see this latest movie about the boy who wouldn’t grow up.

Whacked by Drac Pack
Even in its third week, Sony Animation’s “Hotel Transylvania 2” was significant competition and took second place at the box office with $20 million, after “The Martian’s” $37 million win. Sony timed its release cleverly, so its Halloween theme would play well as the holiday grew closer.

The $15 million that “Pan” took in wasn’t far from the $18 million that another fall family film — Disney’s “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” — did last year, but that one cost $28 million.

Bad Buzz Blitz
The reviews weren’t good. The film has a dismal 23 positive on Rotten Tomatoes. It was also besieged with bad buzz after it rolled out Thursday night. This was an illustration of how buzz that formerly took days to be felt at the box office is now having an effect within hours thanks to social media. When the media piled on, including the New York Post which said, “Joyless ‘Pan’ Should Walk the Plank,” and TheWrap’s Alonso Duralde described it as “shrill,” the negativity snowballed and Saturday’s hoped-for family bump never materialized.

Also Read: 'Pan' Review: Peter Pan Prequel Never Grows Up - Or Gets Interesting

Casting Controversy
All publicity is not necessarily good publicity. Many moviegoers first got wind of “Pan” last year when the casting of Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily drew fire. The character had been depicted as Native American in both the original J.M. Barrie novel and the classic 1953 Disney cartoon. At least the casting of Cara Delevingne as a mermaid flew under the radar.

We’re Not Talking “Power Rangers”
The concept may have been flawed from the outset. The classic J.M. Barrie’s tale doesn’t resonate like it once did with youngsters, and it’s not like the world was clamoring for another Peter Pan movie. To make it a prequel, and to up the ante with a massive budget, in hindsight, seems ill-advised. “Pan” has been granted a China release later this month, but how high can hopes go, since the character is largely unknown behind the Great Wall. Disney faced a similar challenge with “Oz The Great and Powerful,” which topped out at $25 million there.

See the 10 Most Cringe-Worthy ‘Pan’ Reviews Here:

23 White Actors Miscast in Nonwhite Roles, From Mickey Rooney to Emma Stone (Photos)

Hollywood just doesn't seem to learn from its mistakes as it continues to cast white actors in nonwhite roles again and again. And again.

Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., Roger Ebert, Beatrice Aguirre Zuniga
Katharine Hepburn in "Dragon Seed" (1944)

Caucasian Hepburn played a Chinese woman in this big-screen adaptation of the Pearl S. Buck novel.

MGM
Marlon Brando in "The Teahouse of the August Moon" (1956)

Brando starred as an Okinawan translator for the U.S. Army in this comedy about the American occupation of the island nation.

MGM
John Wayne in "Conquerer" (1956)

Wayne was cast as Mongol conquerer Genghis Khan in what's considered by many to be one of the worst films of all time.

RKO Radio Pictures
Charlton Heston in "Touch of Evil" (1958)

Heston starred as Ramon Miguel Vargas in the 1958 crime film, a Mexican narcotics officer.

Universal
Mickey Rooney in "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (1961)

More caricature than character, Rooney starred as the buck-toothed, Japanese Mr. Yunioshi in the 1961 film, which has faced volumes of criticism since.

Paramount Pictures
Natalie Wood in "West Side Story" (1961)

Wood plays a Puerto Rican teenager in the 1961 musical film, although she was Russian-American in real life.

United Artists
Laurence Olivier in "Othello" (1965)

Not only did the white actor play a Moor in 1965's "Othello," he did so while wearing blackface.

Warner Bros.
Elvis Presley in "Stay Away, Joe" (1968)

The "Jailhouse Rock" singer played a Native American rodeo rider in the 1968 comedy Western. Along with this miscasting, many also criticized the film's use of stereotypes and offensive humor.

Movieclips Classic Trailers
Peter Sellers in "The Party" (1968)

The English actor wore brown face for his role as Hrundi V. Bakshi, an Indian actor, in the comedy film. "The Party" was also called out for its racist humor and perpetuating South Asian stereotypes.

Movieclips
Al Pacino in "Scarface" (1983)

Pacino plays a Cuban gangster in the 1983 film, and many criticized his over-the-top accent as offensive.

Universal
Anthony Hopkins in "Mask of Zorro" (1998)

Welsh actor Hopkins starred as the Spanish Zorro, a.k.a. Don Diego de la Vega, in the 1998 film.

Tristar
Rob Schneider in "50 First Dates" (2004)

Schneider seems to play a different ethnicity in every Adam Sandler movie. In "The Waterboy" he was the "You can do it!" guy, in "Big Daddy," he was a Middle-Eastern deliveryman, and in "50 First Dates," he plays a native Hawaiian. Badly.

Columbia Pictures
Angelina Jolie in "A Mighty Heart" (2007)

In the 2007 drama film, Jolie plays Mariane Pearl, a real-life journalist of Afro-Chinese-Cuban descent, though the actress herself is of mixed-European descent.

Roger Ebert
Mike Myers in "The Love Guru" (2008)

Myers played an Indian-American guru in the roundly panned movie, in which he dressed up a lot of racist jokes in a terrible accent.

See Video: Mike Myers Was ‘Super Proud’ Standing Next to Kanye West When He Dissed George W. Bush

Paramount
Every lede character in "21" (2008)

The movie follows a group of math students who come up with a card-counting strategy to win big in Vegas. While the movie had a predominantly white cast, the real-life MIT students were Asian American.

Sony
Jake Gyllenhaal in "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" (2010)
Gyllenhaal plays a Middle Eastern prince in the film, which many called "insulting" and "the perfect example of whitewashing."

Also Read: Jake Gyllenhaal in Talks to Join Benedict Cumberbatch in ‘The Current War’

Disney
Ben Affleck in "Argo" (2012)

Affleck plays Mexican American Tony Mendez, a former CIA technical-operations officer whose life this film is based on.

Warner Bros.
Johnny Depp in "Lone Ranger" (2013)

Johnny Depp played a Native American in Disney's film, which sparked outrage among fans and critics despite the actor's claims that his great-grandmother had mostly Cherokee blood.

Also Read: Disney CFO: ‘Lone Ranger’ Flop Shows Non-Franchise Movies Need to Cost Less

Disney
Benedict Cumberbatch in "Star Trek Into Darkness" (2013)

In this "Star Trek" installment, Cumberbatch plays villainous Khan Noonien Singh, a genetically engineered human from North India.

IMDb
Rooney Mara in "Pan" (2015)

Mara was cast as Tiger Lily, a Native American, in the 2015 film based on the Peter Pan story.

Also Read: Rooney Mara in Negotiations to Play Tiger Lily in Warner Bros.’ ‘Pan’

Warner Bros.
Emma Stone in "Aloha" (2015)

Stone played a Chinese/Swedish/Hawaiian woman in this critically and commercially disappointing Cameron Crowe romantic comedy.

Also Read: Cameron Crowe Apologizes for Emma Stone’s Asian ‘Aloha’ Character: ‘Was Based on a Real-Life, Red-Head Local’

Sony
Juliette Binoche in "The 33" (2015)

Binoche plays a Chilean miner in the 2015 film, which is based on the real events of the 2010 mining disaster.

Beatrice Aguirre Zuniga
Scarlett Johansson in "Ghost in the Shell" (2017)

Scarlett Johansson, who consistently takes on roles for nonwhite actors, plays the Japanese lead in this lackluster film. Nevertheless, this miscasting sparked a larger conversation on Hollywood's whitewashing of Asian roles.

Paramount Pictures