Cocaine Bear’s absurd premise points to a decent box office opening

Cocaine Bear – which hits theaters Friday – might not be in the same league as Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, but early estimates suggest it could pave the way for more promising mid-budget films. According to Variety, the Elizabeth Banks-directed dark comedy film is expected to gross $15-17 million at the North American box office in its opening weekend (about second place in the region, right behind Ant-Man 3. Produced on a budget of US$35 million (about Rs.290 billion), it will be interesting to see how things play out globally.

Evoking the sense of the absurd Reddit Reimagining history for the screen, the film might gain traction for being just plain weird – it’s aimed at a younger audience that expects some campy horror and laughs. A big budget company such as Universal images supporting it might just mean more publicity with diversity It is estimated that this positive buzz could lead to a US$20 million (about Rs.1.66 billion) opening in the US and Canada. Universal has released ads and trailers for cocaine bear on their Indian channels, but there’s no word on whether the film will be shown in other languages ​​besides English. The company also released a pixelated one browser video game for the same last week where you hunt down civilians and pick up duffel bags of cocaine for speed boosts.

In India, the film has stiff competition at both Hollywood And bollywood fronts. First is the one mentioned above Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniawhich allegedly open at Rs. 25 crore for the first three days in the country – a great start for a not so popular character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That said, it still falls well short of other entries in the franchise, such as Spider-Man: No Way Homewho moved in Rs. 79 crore within the first three days.

One might suspect that the low numbers had something to do with that Ant Man 3 Release that clashes with the one led by Kartik Aaryan Shehzada. The latter reportedly managed to collect Rs. 20.20 crore within the same time span in India. If cocaine bear Releases on February 24, it will also be against Puss in Boots: The Last Wishwhich recently exceeded the 400 million dollars (approx. Rs. 3,313 crore) mark at the worldwide box office. Shah Rukh Khan led Pathan is another hurdle on its way as it has raised over Rs 1,000 worldwide as of Tuesday. Diversity determines that Ant-Man and the Wasp Quanumania retains its #1 spot and continues into its second week, boasting the strongest opening in the shrinking superhero trilogy. At the time of writing, Ant-Man 3 has grossed US$250.1 million (around Rs.2,072 billion) in ticket sales worldwide.

Inspired by a true event from the mid-1980s, Cocaine Bear explores the drama and struggle for survival surrounding a strange group of tourists, cops and criminals whose lives converge in a Georgia forest after an American black bear accidentally drops a bag has consumed cocaine and rages like hell. While the beast was found dead in real life, banks The upcoming comedy paints a “what if” scenario in which the bear survives and wreaks havoc in its path in search of more punch. This is the third directing assignment for actress and filmmaker Banks, who made her debut with Pitch Perfect 2.

As previously mentioned, Cocaine Bear is priced at $35 million, most of which is heading towards Weta FX to bring the coked bear to life. The company was also responsible for special effects in the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings trilogy and the latest from James Cameron Avatar: The Way of Water. Cocaine Bear features an ensemble cast including Keri Russell (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker), O’Shea Jackson Jr./ Ice Cube, Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (modern family) and Ray Liotta (Goodfellas).

Cocaine Bear hits theaters worldwide on February 24th.