‘The Dog Stars’ Collapses Further, Now One of Ridley Scott’s Biggest Box Office Bombs Ever
Ridley Scott has built one of the most enduring careers in Hollywood history, delivering genre-defining classics like ‘Alien,’ ‘Blade Runner’ and ‘Gladiator’ across five decades of filmmaking. Even legendary directors hit rough patches, though, and the veteran filmmaker has quietly assembled a string of box office disappointments in recent years that few audiences have noticed amid his bigger hits.
That string of misses now includes his latest post-apocalyptic thriller, an adaptation of Peter Heller’s acclaimed novel that arrived in theaters with a stacked cast and a hefty production budget behind it. Despite the pedigree involved, the film’s opening weekend numbers already signaled serious trouble ahead for 20th Century Studios.
That trouble has now deepened considerably. ‘The Dog Stars’ sank an additional 77% on its second Friday, pulling in just $700,000, cementing its status as one of the biggest bombs of Ridley Scott’s entire career.
The film, starring Jacob Elordi as civilian pilot Hig alongside Josh Brolin as ex-Marine survivalist Bangley, had already stumbled badly out of the gate, opening to just $8 million domestically against a production budget reported between $70 million and $110 million. That opening placed it in fifth position at the box office, well behind expectations for a film featuring this level of star power and directorial pedigree.
The film’s struggles weren’t limited to its box office performance. ‘The Dog Stars’ currently holds a 40% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes alongside a so-so 71% audience rating, and it received a lackluster C+ CinemaScore grade, a poor indicator for any film’s ability to maintain momentum in the weeks following release.
Social media analytics firm RelishMix noted the film trailed comparable action-adventure titles by 15% in online engagement, with audiences questioning whether the adaptation captured the novel’s quiet humanity or simply amplified explosions instead. Critics similarly pointed to unfavorable comparisons with other post-apocalyptic properties like ‘The Last of Us’ and ‘The Road,’ arguing the film did little to distinguish itself within an increasingly crowded genre.
The demographic breakdown of opening weekend audiences also raised eyebrows, with women under 25, a group that typically represents a strong portion of Elordi’s fanbase, making up only 6% of ticket buyers. Men over 25 led attendance at 45%, suggesting the film failed to connect with the younger audience that might have been expected given its star’s growing profile.
This latest disappointment extends what’s become a genuinely rough recent stretch for Scott at the box office. The director now has six consecutive box office disappointments to his name, following ‘All the Money in the World,’ ‘The Last Duel,’ ‘House of Gucci,’ ‘Napoleon’ and ‘Gladiator II,’ even as each of those films arrived with considerable star power and awards-season ambitions.
Despite that streak, Scott’s track record hasn’t scared off major studios entirely. He’s reportedly already moved forward on another project, an adaptation of ‘Treasure Island’ that Sony has agreed to finance, suggesting the industry still views his name as bankable enough to justify continued investment despite recent box office struggles.
‘The Dog Stars’ also features Margaret Qualley, Guy Pearce and Allison Janney rounding out its ensemble cast, giving the film a genuinely impressive roster of talent that ultimately couldn’t translate into audience turnout. Directed by Scott from a screenplay by Mark L. Smith, the film runs 118 minutes and was produced through Scott Free Productions alongside 20th Century Studios.
With its brutal second-weekend collapse now confirmed, ‘The Dog Stars’ looks destined to finish its theatrical run as one of the more forgettable entries in Scott’s otherwise storied filmography. Whether the film finds a second life on streaming remains to be seen, though its theatrical fate appears all but sealed at this point.
What do you think went wrong with The Dog Stars at the box office?
Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!
