All eyes were on Wonka, The Color Purple, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom during the Christmas release. Though Wonka and The Lost Kingdom turned out to be commercial successes, no one would’ve guessed that a romantic comedy would also be a huge hit. However, Anyone But You is a success that’s shocking the mainstream. The Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney film had a low opening of $6 million, which was also backed by lackluster reviews from critics.
The buzz never dried for the romantic comedy as it managed to slowly climb in box office sales and has amassed a strong $150 million worldwide. Given the production price tag of $25 million, this is a huge win since Anyone But You is an R-rated romantic comedy. The genre in general doesn’t see many theatrical releases in the North American market, so for such a small film to garner such a big fan base is great for the future of small and decent-budget films overall.
R-rated comedies Were Dead In The Mainstream
Edgy and adult comedies still exist. In fact, Seth MacFarlane‘s Ted is considered a surprising success. Still, while the genre thrives on the small screen, it hasn’t had much impact on the big one. The focus in the past several years has boiled down to blockbusters, horror, and award contenders. R-rated comedies and rom-coms have mainly disappeared with less than five being given a full theatrical release in 2023.
No Hard Feelings was the highest-grossing R-rated comedy since 2019’s Good Boys, and that film only generated $87 million at the box office. When it comes to romantic comedies, they never even made a fraction of what Marvel films did during its prime. My Big Fat Greek Wedding remains the highest-grossing romantic comedy of all time and that came out in 2002. That feature collected a strong $368 million worldwide. Raunchy comedies aren’t that much better.
While classics such as The Wedding Crashers, The Hangover, Scary Movie, and Bridesmaids grossed over $100 million worldwide, The Hangover is still the highest grossing of the genre at $277 million. Anyone But You succeeding in the mainstream brings the spark back into the market as there’s still demand for these kinds of small films. It sucks that these types of movies are mostly on streaming these days but with the success of No Hard Feelings and Anyone But You, studios would bring much-needed diversity to the film market when it comes to genres.
Anyone But You Represents The Power Lower Budget Films Can Have At The Box Office
2023 was a disaster for most blockbuster films. Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, The Marvels, and Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning all had a production budget that was north of $200 million and they flopped big time. When Marvel and Disney were at their prime, their films were raking in easy money, especially around the time of Avengers: Endgame. However, the pandemic changed everything.
Audiences became more accustomed to waiting for movies to hit whatever streaming service it was going to. Plus, theaters raised their prices for tickets, so it made people pickier on what they should see at the multiplex. DVD and Blu-rays were a vital tool for films before streaming came along. Donnie Darko, Blade Runner, Fight Club, and Office Space are just some examples of films that bombed at the box office. These movies eventually became cult classics because so many people discovered them through DVD, VHS, or Blu-ray.
Even that is dying as Best Buy and Target have confirmed that they are getting rid of physical media in 2024. Smaller and unknown films would typically make their budget back thanks to physical media sales, but streaming has killed that sadly. Studios aren’t backing smaller-scale projects for theatrical releases because there’s a mentality that it’s pointless to give it a full run (unless it’s horror) besides the obvious positives.
They’re aiming for billion-dollar releases, franchise starters, remakes, sequels, or huge blockbusters based on established IP. 2023 wasn’t a great year for most studios financially. Hollywood can’t keep making $200 million plus features that bomb. There is a NEED for smaller scale films like Anyone But You as it’s better for the market all around.
It Also Highlights That Audiences Still Crave Originality
For every Barbie and Oppenheimer, there’s a The Creator or Renfield. There are times when original films outright flop at the box office. It’s a huge reason that Tinseltown is so adamant about using established IPs these days. Every now and again, original films remind studios that it’s necessary to take a risk on original concepts. Anyone But You is a generic rom-com ultimately, but it’s still a new take on a well-worn trope.
Studios desperately need to STOP spending nearly $200 million on films and take more risks on low-budget, but cost-effective movies. Some will flop. Some will be hits. Whether they will reach a billion is anyone’s guess. Though Oppenheimer, Avatar, and Barbie prove that originality can be a billion-dollar success. Anyone But You’s success should help smaller-scale films going forward.
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