- A Minecraft Movie has set a record for total for presales for movie based on a video game
- The Minecraft Movie hits theaters today
- Reviews of the movie have been patchy so far
A Minecraft Movie may only open in theaters today, but it has already set a box office record – for presales for a movie based on a video game.
The movie, which stars Jack Black and Jason Momoa, has beaten a record set in 2023 by Blumhouse’s horror film Five Nights at Freddy’s. A Minecfaft Movie has taken $10.55 million in previews, beating the previous record of $10.3 million, according to Deadline.
For those of you wondering, Super Mario Bros didn’t have previews because it opened on a Wednesday, rather than the Friday that A Minecraft Movie and Five Nights at Freddy’s did.
A Minecraft Movie building momentum
Whether A Minecraft Movie can continue this momentum remains to be seen. For a benchmark, Five Nights at Freddy’s took $80 million on its first weekend. However, Minecraft is a much better-known game franchise, so its makers will be hoping to beat that total.
Current projections suggest that A Minecraft Movie could break $80 million, but it is unsure if it will become the second movie this year to take more than $100 million in its first four days. The only movie to take $100 million in its first four days was Captain America: Brave New World.
Mixed reviews
In A Minecraft Movie, a group of players suddenly find themselves in the magical but blocky world of Minecraft. Together, they must work with Steve to stop an evil that threatens to destroy the Minecraft world. Much block-based shenanigans ensue.
So far, the reviews for A Minecraft Movie, which is directed by Jared Hess and stars black as the iconic character of Steve, have been distinctly mixed. Currently, it has a score of 52% on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 52 reviews.
Other reviewers have praised the performances of the lead actors, while some have criticised the storyline and the level of humor.
However, reviewers are adults and generally, not gamers either. With the bulk of Minecraft’s fanbase made up of children and gamers, they may have a different take on its worth compared to mainstream cinema reviewers.
You can read more about A Minecraft Movie here. If you want to see what the fuss is about for yourself, it is in theaters from today.
