Blumhouse Dropped the Ball With ‘M3GAN 2.0’ So Bad That Even Their CEO Admitted It

M3GAN 2.0 has undoubtedly been a flop, making only $17 million globally in its first week compared to the first M3GAN, which made over $30 million in its opening week and went on to accumulate over $180 million worldwide. For fans of the franchise, it is a huge disappointment as the unexpected success of the first movie hasn’t been replicated as a result of small changes totally unrelated to the actual content of the movie.

M3GAN’s staying power has clearly been overestimated due to the viral wave of content that helped propel the first movie to success. Consequently, the decision to move the release from the beginning of the year to the start of the summer window meant M3GAN 2.0 was immediately in hot water. The new release period meant M3GAN 2.0 had to face a huge increase in competition, with Blumhouse overestimating the popularity of such a new franchise compared to movies based on longer-existing IP, such as Jurassic World Rebirth, F1: The Movie, 28 Years Later, and How to Train Your Dragon. The issue presents a huge feeling of misjudgment that the newly crowned horror icon has been cheated out of the success she deserves.

‘M3GAN’s Box Office Success Defied the Odds

M3GAN reads to Cady in M3GAN. — Image via Universal Pictures

The release of M3GAN defied all box office expectations, becoming hugely successful despite its January “dump month” distribution date. The beginning of the year is a notoriously dry period for new releases, with studios often choosing to put out movies they have less confidence in due to the post-holiday season slump and winter period seeing a decline in spending and people venturing to the cinema. M3GAN was given the most pessimistic release date of January 6th, arguably the worst day in the calendar for a film’s success.

Despite the traditional unresponsive nature of January, M3GAN massively overperformed, a result of an incredibly impressive marketing campaign and word-of-mouth. Blumhouse focused on M3GAN as a character, honing in on her theatrical yet sarcastic nature and playing with Gen-Z humor. The movie re-imagined the killer doll subgenre and, right from the first trailers, proved it wasn’t like other horror movies. A combination of playing on TikTok dance trends and sending out replica M3GAN dolls meant the movie was a huge success with younger audiences, helping the movie to defy box office expectations.

‘M3GAN 2.0’ Was Destined to Flop Before Its Opening Weekend

M3GAN 2.0 appeared to be following the same marketing tactics, leaning into the cultural icon the titular android has become. However, one catastrophic change ultimately ensured the original success wouldn’t be replicated: changing the release window. Rather than repeating the strategy of capitalizing on the dead zone of the new year, the choice was to make M3GAN 2.0 a summer release. The fresh adaptation was hung out to dry, having to compete with the likes of F1: The Movie and Jurassic Park Rebirth.

‘M3GAN 2.0’ Audiences Disagree With Critics on Rotten Tomatoes and CinemaScore

Blumhouse’s killer doll continues to be a fan-favorite.

The truth is, audiences with the luxury of choice simply won’t flock to see an unestablished franchise over something they are more familiar with. With ticket prices rising and time constraints, the casual moviegoer cannot see everything and has to prioritize their top choice. Without such heavy hitters as competition, M3GAN 2.0 could’ve easily attracted a similar opening weekend audience as the first. Even if the studio didn’t want to release the sequel in January, a late September or October release, where horror is much more popular, would have been more logical. Even though M3GAN 2.0 leans much more into action and comedy over horror, M3GAN has taken her place in the horror pantheon, making the movies always feel horror adjacent.

‘M3GAN 2.0’ Deserves the Cinema Experience

It is painful to watch M3GAN 2.0 suffer so much from poor release planning, not only because it lessens the chance of a third movie but because the sequel truly elevated its source material and created a fun cinema experience. All the self-aware, blunt humor of the first movie is there, but the bigger budget allowed the filmmakers to supersize the action, leading to huge set pieces and constant engagement. The movie also begins to explore the expansion of technology in a version of reality where scientific and technical knowledge has led to inventions such as M3GAN. There is an examination of neurological advancements and complex security systems that add so much depth to the world and create a thematically dense universe to explore. It feels like the sequel only wedged the door of possibility open, and this movie world has so much more to give.

M3GAN 2.0 is an extremely fun and interactive two hours that deserves the big-screen experience. Had it been given a less competitive release date, more people could’ve seen it and consequently told their friends to do the same. Jason Blum has acknowledged the flop status of the sequel, claiming that they thought M3GAN was a more popular figure and that they “classically overthought how powerful people’s engagement was.” In reality, regardless of the first movie’s success, M3GAN 2.0 is a prime example that a franchise takes time to build and establish itself. It takes more than pop culture relevance to create a hit, especially a summer blockbuster.