Sony is sending 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple to VOD this Tuesday, after only 32 days in theaters.
That’s proof right there that the theatrical run didn’t go as planned.
The sequel has made just $56.6M worldwide, including only $25M domestically, after opening to a dismal $12.5M.
Those numbers are a far cry from the first 28 Years Later, which hit over $151M worldwide and more than $70M domestically after its June release, numbers that are also nothing to brag about.
But for The Bone Temple, the drop-off is massive.
A $100M Loss?
The Bone Temple’s break-even number looks to be around $157.5M based on the budget of $63M.
With only $56.6M worldwide so far, that puts the film roughly $100M in the hole. Even factoring in post-theatrical revenue, that’s a brutal shortfall.
Studios don’t rush movies to digital in just over a month when things are going great.
Early VOD = Underperformance
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos recently told Congress that early digital releases typically happen when films underperform.
He pointed to shortened theatrical windows — like Superman hitting VOD at 35 days — as examples of box office weakness. The traditional VOD window tends to sit closer to 45 days.
The Bone Temple hitting VOD at 32 days falls well below that standard window, and that speaks volumes.
Audience Rejection
The first film already showed signs of division among audiences.
While critics scored it high, the fan reception was far more mixed due to the woke bait-and-switch storyline.
Now the sequel’s collapse proves many moviegoers simply didn’t come back.
The sharp drop from $151M worldwide for the first film to $56.6M for Bone Temple makes that clear.
Instead of building momentum, the franchise cratered. If this was meant to launch a long-running revival, the numbers tell a different story. At this point, the 28 Years Later franchise looks finished. And that’s a good thing.
