After his successful stint in Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone, Kevin Costner has continued his tryst with a genre that he has been extremely familiar with, through his latest film Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 which he has written, produced, directed, and starred in. Set during the American Civil War period, the Western drama is the first installment in an ambitious 4 part film series that premiered in the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
While Costner’s infamous exit from Yellowstone ahead of part 2 of its final season is making the headlines, it looks like the star is also having to contend with lukewarm reviews for his passion project. Judging by the initial box office responses and certain demographic statistics related to the film, it seems that Costner might have to look at other options to get back his money, especially since part 2 of series is already due to release in August.
Kevin Costner’s Latest Film Isn’t Making Waves
In his latest film and passion project Horizon: The American Saga – Chapter 1, Kevin Costner took on every aspect of filmmaking. The drama which he has written, produced, directed, and starred in, first premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival before making its North American release on June 28th, 2024.
Based on the American Civil War and the expansion of the American West, the movie also has an impressive ensemble cast that includes Sienna Miller and Sam Worthington among others. The drama which is the first installment in a 4 part film series taken on by Costner, unfortunately does not seem to have made an impact judging by its opening weekend at the box office.
Based on an analysis in The Hollywood Reporter, the movie made just $11 million upon its initial weekend release, which is woefully low considering that it was made on a big budget of $100 million. This figure not only points to the fact that ticket sales were unsatisfactory, but also reveals through the age demographic that the film isn’t attracting a younger audience.
For more statistical context, according to PostTrak exit surveys quoted by The Hollywood Reporter, a little over 60 percent of ticket buyers were over age 45, and 47 percent over age 55, which is an age group that traditionally does not target watching a film on an opening weekend. In contrast, only 11 percent of ticket buyers were between ages 18 to 24, 14 percent between ages 25 and 34, and 11 percent between ages 35 to 44.
Following Yellowstone’s big success, it would be natural for Costner to assume that another project in the western genre would touch a chord among the heartlands of America. Looking at its current Rotten Tomatoes rating after 98 published reviews, the movie has earned a disappointing 43% score. While its audience rating seems to be a healthy 71%, the film’s failure to make good monetary collections will be a worrying factor for Costner.
Kevin Costner Can Still Salvage Horizon: An American Saga In This Way
Kevin Costner has put his blood, sweat, tears, and even his hard-earned money into ensuring that his dream project Horizon: Am American Saga – Chapter 1 gets to see the light of day. Before Warner Bros. stepped in as distributor, The Bodyguard star worked tirelessly to find funding for the film, which included putting in $38 million from his own pocket to get it rolling (via The Hollywood Reporter).
But these efforts do not seem to have paid rich dividends the way Costner would have hoped, judging by the poor responses to its opening weekend at the cinemas. Now, along with the pressure of the 2nd film in the series releasing in August almost at the back of its predecessor, the Waterworld star will have the tough task of making up these dismal box office numbers.
Even if the coming days are kinder to the film in terms of box office collection and potentially increases its numbers quite a bit, statistics show that the movie will still face a loss owing to its opening weekend debacle.
According to ComScore chief box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian, Costner’s only hope to salvage his film financially would be if it made up this money through its release on Video-On-Demand (VOD), which would work out to $20 per rental.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, the analyst specifically highlighted the importance of this move with regard to the above age demographic, which showed an older audience who would be more prone to viewing the film on this platform.
The streaming potential down the road is huge for this franchise. Horizon has appeal among the older demographics, for whom this type of movie is in their wheelhouse.
While this could be the much needed way out for Costner and his movie to improve its collection ahead of the release of the 2nd film, it remains to be seen if the Dances With Wolves star decides to choose this route as the best way forward for the film.