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Dimension Films has put toothy fish back on the menu. Inexplicably, a sequel’s coming for Piranha 3D, after it only grossed $10 million opening weekend. The Alexandre Aja-directed film was produced by Mark Canton. Whoever didn’t end up eaten is eligible to reprise.
Actually, Canton said that even those actors turned into chum are asking to take a mulligan and get in the sequel. “We had such a good time that even those cast members who ended up dead want to be in the sequel,” he told Deadline. “We’ll have to figure out how that could work. For us, the way the film held up and then opened strong in England showed that there is room for a real 3D popcorn picture. There’s a fan base that’s growing and it is establishing itself as a fun movie where people are laughing and having fun.” Canton said they are working out who among the creative team will return and it sounded like it’s Aja’s sequel to direct if he wants it.
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Pure genius. What would the world ever do without the sheer strategic brilliance of the studio exec?
a sequel??? it flopped, and audiences hated, it got c average
Audiences didn’t hate it. It scored through the roof on IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes.
Take a look at the critics who have reviewed it on Rotten Tomatoes. Most of them are “Joe’s Movie Blog” and “Chris from SCI-FI LULZ”. Hardly any serious critics have reviewed the movie, which would have ultimately brought down the meter, easily.
“Serious critics” don’t make the effort anymore. You should start reading those blogs. They’re often smarter and more aware of cinematic nuance than the paper critics, who, for some reason, have duped a nation into thinking print = legit. If you read around, that’s never been the case.
not according to cinema goers, fan boys loved it but the general public did not, same thing happened to splice
“Audiences hated…”
No they did not! Everyone who came into the theater with me and my date hooted, hollared, cheered – was awesome!
Plus as the poster above me stated, the ratings were in the high 80′s this weekend on Rotten Tomatoes…
63% by rt community, critics are dead wrong
I don’t know how they’re gonna top this one… but after the ridiculous gore and underwater nude ballet, I’d be interested to see what Aja can cook up for a second.
It’s high near ridiculous to ask folks to fork over $15 to $19 for a B movie like PIRANHA in 3D. I saw the original at the drive-in for $5 – for a CARLOAD of friends – at the Drive-In. And, it was a double feature.
And, this floppo is getting a sequel?
No offense, Joe S. but when you start referencing seeing the original in the theater, let alone at a Drive-In you lose all credibility. The times have changed, Joe. Time to roll with the punches.
“Lose Credibility”? Why? Hey, I see tons of new films, even 3D ones in a theater. But, studios and exhibitors have got to start asking themselves whether it’s a wise policy to charge up to $20 for 3D for low budget B movies. STEP UP 3D may well have bombed for the same reason. It’s one thing for a TOY STORY or an AVATAR, but another for just simple product. Sure, the fan boys will rush out and see it regardless of the ticket price, but, few casual fans will take a flier on a $40 cost for a couple.
And, the Rotten Tomatoes score is an outlier. Metacritic has it at 53, Movie Review Intelligence at 64, MRQE has it at 57. Tomatoes is using far too many Fan Boys sites in their metric.
More importantly, the Cinemascore rating of a C is amongst the hardcore who rushed out to see it. A C is a very poor score when even moderate crap usually gets B’s or B-’s.
joe i’m 22 and i agree with everything you wrote. well defended. also, i paid $14 to see it today and it was fun. didn’t need to be in 3d
OK, so just to summarize. It’s OK to charge higher ticket prices for AVATAR and TOY STORY 3 over other 3-D films because . . . wait, because why? Are you like baseball now? Charging higher tickets prices when your home team plays a division leader? How did you know AVATAR was going to be good or worth the ticket? How did you know that Toy Story wasn’t going to be an IDIANA JONES 4? Would you have paid $20 to see INDY 4? You probably would have and would have regretted it.
And in terms of the cinemascore and % of positive reviews . . . honestly i work in the film business and the only site people care about it Rotten Tomatoes. And yes it drops to 60% from 82% when you go to top critics, but that’s still fresh. And say what you will as it doesn’t sound like you were in the movie theater to see this one, but how do you REALLY know how the audience reacted or what they thought of it? You don’t because you weren’t there.
You weren’t out amongst the people, Joe. You’re still at home watching Betamax and HD DVDs hoping that the tide of technology will change.
I’m not necessarily advocating a price scale for films (though many honchos in the industry have bandied the concept about for years). I was only analyzing why the film underperformed despite decent reviews and buzz. You DO have to ask whether it is good policy to charge $19 for a B movie. It doesn’t matter if the film good or bad, but when you charge that much it is something of an “event” picture. Both STEP UP and PIRANHA seem to have come up against a cost-benefit barrier.
I work in the industry too, and only fools use one barometer to guage reaction to a picture (i.e. Rotten Tomatoes). The Tomatometer is an outlier here.
Regardless of CRITICAL reaction, it is the C rating from Cinemascore that will doom the film next weekend. That is poor word of mouth. A few anecdotal stories of theaters having a rip-roaring time don’t compare to the wider Cinemascore sample.
Wanna bet the film drops a minimum of 50% next weekend?
HAHA way to show your age. Did you have to walk 30 miles in 5 feet of snow just to get to the drive-in.
Ha! Ha! Way to show your idiocy!
Yeah, I know, cinema didn’t exist before YOU were born.
…and Drive-Ins don’t tend to operate in the snow
…and you don’t “walk” to a Drive-In………
Psst… I do believe his comment was meant as sarcasm
“And, this floppo is getting a sequel?” Please. According to online reports it only cost $24M. Don’t know how much P&A cost (anyone here know for sure?) but it should make its budget back during its domestic run. Seems reasonable to assume the same amount overseas, factor in DVD etc and you’re looking at a tidy little earner. If it turns out to be a cult hit then a sequel could do better than the first one, like the second Austin Powers on a smaller scale. If the DVD sales are soft then make it for pennies, like the DVD sequels to From Dusk ‘Til Dawn (both filmed in South Africa on budgets of around $1.5M). No, it’s not Avatar but I’d greenlight a sequel too.
the best news of the day! with so much self important bullshit being churned out, this self deprecating flick delivered big time. elizabeth shue’s 3-d dramatic pauses and the adorable mcqueen spawn were pure joy. glad to see a packed theatre last night with people laughing their asses off at the grove in LA.
personally, i would have seen how the flick did this weekend as to whether or not to pursue a sequel, but overall I think the above comments are mostly out of line and being far too harsh. The audience LOVED it. Twitter and Facebook are buzzing about it and if that Funny or Die “Oscar campaign” didn’t endear you to the flick I dont know what would. The crowd CHEERED at the sight of Christopher Lloyd.
I agree – how genius to pull Lloyd from the sidelines and put him in Piranha.
Gee whiz, $10 million — with inflated 3-D ticket premiums included in that? THAT’s a success? Guess the bar has been lowered, hasn’t it?
SNAKES ON A PLANE looks like an AVATAR-sized smash by comparison, and that movie went down as a big-time disappointment given the months of internet “hype” leading up to it.
BTW Nikki your comments board is becoming deluged with studio plants. Really. It’s sad to see PR people trying to drum up word of mouth by posting all sorts of dribble on here, but it’s becoming a common trend. Regrettably.
Hey Doc,
Not a plant. I just get frustrated when A-holes like you A)haven’t seen a flick and go out and bash it or B) people hold grudges against people who run the studios and badmouth a flick solely because of that instead of focusing in on the people who actually worked on the flick. If you or anyone has ire on this board towards the film take it out on the filmmakers, cast, and crew. But SERIOUSLY stop with all this petty Weinsteins bullshit. Everybody loves a villain. The truth is that this fucking industry NEEDS the Weinsteins and the TRUTH is that all of us should be praying for the box office success for EACH AND EVERY FILM that gets released. Bigger box office, more buyers, more movies!
Spoken like someone who has never been personally screwed over by the Weinsteins. They don’t need your defending; they’re big boys and can handle themselves just fine. All the shit talking in the world will have no effect on whether or not they can continue to exist as a viable business, so who cares if there are people who have an ax to grind? What will affect TWC, as well as the people who work for them and the filmmakers who stumble into their trap, will be whether or not they start green lighting films that make financial sense AND learn how to market them because they haven’t been too great at either lately. Their inability to do this is what most people on here bashing them are referring to anyway, and this is fair game on a site analyzing the business of hollywood.
Awesome news as it was a ton of fun. A little surprised given how it performed at the box office however. The great critical response no doubt played a role in this. I hope Aja returns but doubt he will. I want a sequel sooner rather than later.
They passed out exit surveys at the Saturday night showing I went to at Century City Mall. I’m betting the results had something to do with this decision – a large part of the audience stayed after to fill them out.
If most moviegoers filled in “None” next to each line item requesting interest in any of the cast members as the reason they went to see the movie (as I did), the producers next time can get away without even paying the pitance for Christopher Lloyd, and only put the cash into effects.
As long as the production budget remains in check, there is no reason not to continue this franchise.
Heard at Kate Mantilini’s just this afternoon “Do you know who I am? The producer of the biggest Piranha franchise in history!”
Warning: Spoilers!
I saw it on Friday and it was one of the most fun movies I’ve seen in years, second only to Drag Me to Hell. You can have your Iron Man 2, Inception and Alice in Wonderland. Those films were boring and the audiences I saw them with were either checking their watches or sound asleep. The studios have forgotten how to make movies that are ENJOYABLE! Quibble if you must at jiggling breasts (in 3-D), projectile vomit (in 3-D) and a killer-fish-severed penis spit into the camera (in 3-D), the crowd I saw Piranha 3-D with were LOVING it…cracking up, applauding, cheering, starting with the first cameo shot. THAT’S what a movie should do for an audience.
Yesssss more Elisabeth Shue!!
10 Mil opening weekend warrants a sequel? This sounds like a Canton fabrication to me.
82% on Rotten Tomatoes.
My friend wrote the flick. Stop lying about his hard work, asshole.
a low 63% by the community of RT…critics don’t matter much, it’s bad
Can’t believe no one has mentioned the obvious, that this sequel will be made on the cheap and released Direct-To-Video. When you look at it with those parameters, the sequel not only makes sense, it seems inevitable.
Made on the cheap? Yes. Straight-to-video? I doubt it.
Although, on the heels of this, I do suspect either direct imitations, or a Monster Movie parody…
And 3.. 2..
here’s a sequel we really need… not
Harvey: What are we projected to do this weekend, Bob?
Bob: High teens my brother.
Harvey: What if the projections are wrong?
Bob: We run the article anyway.
Harvey: But we’ll look like idiots, developing a sequel to a bomb at the box office, Bob.
Bob: They’re Piranahs, Harvey. We’ll do high teens.
yep jayson, nailed it.
Dang,
I was really hoping P3D would do boffo box-office opening weekend -
it should have been much better than a tepid $10M, but when bigger-budget/higher-profile/star-driven films like THE SWITCH or critic-proof family-friendly franchises like NANNY MCPHEE only score mere single-digit openings, P3D’s haul ain’t too shabby – as Aja delivered blood, boobs, and black humor by the bucket load as promised!
Next up on Dimension’s slate…
ORCA 3D?
TENTACLES 3D?
GRIZZLY 3D?
FOOD OF THE GODS 3D?
It only made 10 because those egg heads Weinstein do not know how to market a movie. They never got behind it, never had a point of view, and never committed the type of dollars needed to get it to the high teens. Hearing all the talk back, the movie was VERY entertaining. Only Bob and Harvey could muddle their way to a lackluster opening where there should have been a strong one. Great job guys!
Agree completely, but don’t forget their ridiculous marketing consultant. With their constant stream of marketing misfires, this is yet another example of three egomaniacs insisting they know better than everyone else and then getting it wrong. What I want to know is how anyone thinks it’s a good idea to give these guys funding?
Q: How can you cure the common cold?
A: Give it to The Weinstein Company to distribute.
I think his point was that exploitation flicks only work when they’re dirt cheap and a dime a dozen.
Come on, Big Fish. The brothers are great marketers. Among the best. When they actually have enough cash on-hand to over-spend….
A welcome surprise.
To Steve in LA:
I have to laugh out loud! What timing! We Tivo’d Drag me to Hell this weekend and fired it up about 35 minutes ago… and I was so bored I got up to check Deadline!
I haven’t see the fish flick, but if I do, I can only PRAY it’s better than Drag… which lived up to its name.
@Flynnfann12 – I’m actually sad that you didn’t get to see Drag Me to Hell in a movie theater, because it’s exactly the kind of movie that really comes alive with an audience. Again, people were laughing, applauding, stomping their feet, cheering. I walked out with my friend and we said to each other “Wow…that was really FUN!” I’ve since seen it on cable and still really liked it, but I admit that I was remembering my theatre experience as I watched it. As more and more people abandon the movies for their living rooms, I think it’s important that we celebrate and talk about the ones that really bring a crowd together. In my previous post, I mentioned Iron Man 2, Inception and Alice in Wonderland. I know they’ve made many billions of dollars at the box office, but I stand by my original comment that they were boring. Nobody in the theaters I saw them in were the least bit interested and invested in what was unfolding before their eyes. In the case of Inception, watching two people fall asleep in front of me was more interesting than the overrated movie itself. In the case of Dinner For Schmucks, I was surprised at how little people laughed at a so-called comedy, but thought that it might play better on cable. Piranha 3-D is NOT a movie that’s going to play well at home. It’s 100% an audience picture and for that reason, I urge you to see it while you can with an appreciative crowd. And my full review is this: it’s not scary, it’s not suspenseful, it’s poorly written, some performers seriously overact, some of the CGI effects are cheesy, most of the plot makes no sense…BUT IT’S THE MOST FUN I’VE HAD IN A THEATRE THIS YEAR!!!!!
The movie was pretty clearly in on the joke, no?
I mean, are we saying there’s no place for camp in the marketplace. Sure there is.
Makes sense to me. Nobody ever went broke sticking loads of boobs and blood on screen.
Shoot it fast and shoot it cheap.
It’s not my cup of tea but it certainly lends itself to become a trashy fun franchise.
Anyone who says they don’t want a sequel obviously has not seen the film. It is the best movie of the summer and pure fun. All the movies this summer, besides Toy Story 3, have been a real disappointment. Anyone who has not seen this film has got to see it now!
@Doc Michaels – I’m not affiliated with any studio; I just like entertaining movies.
John Sayles is a great director. An American classic.
And yet, one day, when he stands before the gates of movie heaven, he is going to have to answer for scripting the original Piranha.
Here is what’s happening:
1) PIRANHA 3D underperforms. Take away the inflated 3D ticket prices and it makes $7M on its opening weekend.
2) The troubled Weinstein Company doesn’t have enough money for a desperation second weekend ad blitz, so…
3) they put out a press release announcing a sequel, which gets them free publicity, hoping a bunch of dumb kids will think, “wow, there’s a sequel!? I gotta see what all the fuss is about!!”
Add it up and you get…desperation.