Folie à Deux’ at International Box Office

“Joker: Folie á Deux” isn’t rebounding at the international box office, where the off-beat comic book musical added $22.6 million from 77 territories in its second weekend of release.

Though the film has performed far better in overseas markets compared to domestically — with $113 million internationally and $51 million in North America, bringing its global tally to $165.3 million — ticket sales are lagging far behind expectations. The Warner Bros. sequel cost $200 million to produce (not including the roughly $100 million spent on marketing and other distribution expenses). So, it’ll struggle at this pace to get anywhere close to the $450 million needed to break even, according to knowledgeable sources. The original 2019 “Joker” was massively successful with $335 million domestically and $743 million internationally for a global total of $1.078 billion. And it carried a roughly $60 million price tag, so it was hugely profitable as well. 

“Joker 2” debuted in Japan with $2.4 million over the weekend and touches down in its next major territory, China, on Oct. 16. So far, United Kingdom stands as the top-grossing overseas market with $11.8 million, followed by Germany with $7.9 million, Italy with $7.6 million, Mexico with $7.4 million and France with $7.1 million. Moviegoers who have trekked to theaters to see “Folie a Deux” have opted for premium screens, with Imax contributing $13.5 million in global ticket sales.

Revenues for the “Joker” sequel were lagging behind Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s “The Wild Robot,” which soared to No. 1 among Hollywood offerings with $24.1 million from 55 territories over the weekend. The well-reviewed family film has amassed $64.7 million overseas and $148 million globally to date. The studio is staggering the international release, with plans to open “The Wild Robot” in additional markets in the coming weeks.