‘Asteroid City’ Passes Lifetime Haul of ‘The French Dispatch’ at the Domestic Box Office

‘Asteroid City’ Surpasses ‘The French Dispatch’ in Domestic Box Office Earnings

The latest release from Focus Features, ‘Asteroid City,’ continues to thrive as it rakes in $24 million in the United States and Canada alone. Impressively, $2.23 million of that total was earned during this past weekend, proving the enduring allure of Wes Anderson’s captivating tale set in a small town. With its modest budget, ‘Asteroid City’ is well on its way to recouping its production costs, adding another success to Anderson’s remarkable filmography.

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Compared to the filmmaker’s recent works, ‘Asteroid City’ is poised to fall within the average box office earnings achieved by Anderson’s previous films. The action-packed animated adventure ‘Isle of Dogs’ grossed $64.2 million upon its 2018 release, featuring notable performances by Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, and Tilda Swinton. Anderson’s most recent directorial effort, ‘The French Dispatch,’ accumulated $46.3 million worldwide before exiting theaters. Notably, ‘Asteroid City’ has already surpassed the domestic lifetime earnings of ‘The French Dispatch,’ which amounted to $16.1 million, along with an international total of $30.2 million. While ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ remains Anderson’s highest-grossing film, reaching a remarkable $173 million with a $25 million budget, ‘Asteroid City’ is more likely to conclude its run closer to the earnings of ‘The French Dispatch’ and ‘Isle of Dogs.’

In the movie, ‘Asteroid City’ serves as the title of a fictional story within the film’s universe, where the characters themselves portray different roles within that narrative. Jason Schwartzman stars as Jones Hall, who plays the role of Augie Steenbeck, a war photojournalist planning to attend the Stargaze Convention with his three daughters and son. Augie finds himself in an uncomfortable predicament as he grapples with the task of informing his children about their mother’s passing, a truth he has yet to reveal. Stanley (Tom Hanks), Augie’s father-in-law, disapproves of his decision to withhold this information, believing that the children deserve to know the truth.

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Considering that ‘Asteroid City’ is helmed by Wes Anderson, it comes as no surprise that the film features an ensemble cast of familiar faces. Scarlett Johansson portrays Midge Campbell, who becomes Augie’s love interest throughout the story. Interestingly, the actors within the film’s universe also develop real-life romantic connections as the narrative unfolds. Meanwhile, amidst blossoming love in the artificial town, General Gibson (Jeffrey Wright) busies himself with defending his territory from alien attacks.

Wes Anderson to Take on ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar’ Next

Wes Anderson has been keeping himself immensely busy in recent years, seamlessly transitioning from one project to the next. After unveiling ‘Asteroid City’ to the world, the director is now preparing to release ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar’ on Netflix. Benedict Cumberbatch takes on the eponymous role in this short film, which will be divided into four parts, exploring the darker aspects of Roald Dahl’s character (played by Ralph Fiennes) and setting the stage for Cumberbatch’s enigmatic portrayal. The project is scheduled to premiere on the streaming platform later this year.

For FilmSweep’s exclusive interview with Scarlett Johansson and Jason Schwartzman, please watch the video below:

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• Focus Features
• Wes Anderson
• Scarlett Johansson
• Jason Schwartzman
• Benedict Cumberbatch
• Roald Dahl
• Netflix