The Christmas season is already starting on the big screen, and one of this year’s biggest holiday projects is Red – but due to its budget, it has to do well at the box office to be successful. 2024 will see an interesting array of Christmas films hitting theaters and streaming, and one of the biggest – in terms of production and cast – is Red. Directed by Jake Kasdan, Red reunites Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans and JK Simmons for an action story set on Christmas Eve.
Red follows Callum Drift (Johnson), Santa’s head of security, who has asked to retire after this year’s Christmas rush. However, on Christmas Eve, Santa Claus (Simmons) is kidnappedand it’s up to Callum to find and rescue him. Callum is forced to team up with Jack O’Malley (Evans), a skilled mercenary hacker who has important information that could lead them to Santa and his kidnapper. At the time of writing, Red received negative reviewsand in terms of box office, it has to reach a high number to be a success.
Red One’s budget is reportedly $250 million
Red One’s budget ended up going up
The story of Red was created by producer Hiram Garcia, with a script written by Chris Morgan. Filming began in October 2022 and ended in February 2023, with a budget of US$200 million. However, recent reports on the production of Red revealed that there was on-set problems with Johnson that ended up increasing the film’s budget. The report, shared by The wrapclaims that Johnson was, on average, seven to eight hours late for set every day, and there were days when he didn’t show up at all.
This is due to Johnson’s refusal to work more than five hours a day, and is not a problem unique to Johnson. Red. Additionally, Garcia’s alleged ineptitude as a producer also contributed to RedThe budget is rising. Johnson’s delay resulted in an extra $50 million being added to the Redbudgetbringing it to $250 million. These reports are not just a bad look for Johnson and Redbut they also make its box office performance a greater challenge, as it needs to reach a higher number to break even.
Red One needs to make at least $500 million to be a box office success
Red One needs to go up a lot more in terms of box office
With Redbudget now around US$250 million, this means that needs to earn at least $500 at the box office to break even and be a success – the problem is that it’s not going over well with the critics. At the time of writing, Red has a 32% score from critics on Rotten tomatoeswith critics finding that it lacks “Christmas magic”, that it has an uneven plot and tone, and that the emotional parts of the story feel forced. However, Red could gain some popularity with the general public once it is released, allowing it to reach the $500 million mark.
Most of the time, films that didn’t perform well in theaters end up becoming successful on streaming.
Of course, this is just about performance and box office success, as Red you may end up finding your audience later. Most of the time, films that didn’t perform well in theaters end up becoming streaming hits months later. Red could suffer the same fate, but even if it becomes a streaming hit in a few months (or weeks, depending on box office performance), This Won’t Change Your Box Office Numbers.