I’m not buying this was a guaranteed flop. Dumbo is one of the most well known stories of all time and it really looked like a charming film for the whole family. No reason it should have done so much worse than Cinderella and Oz.

Eh, a mid 40s opening isn't really a flop.

I don't think 45-50 mil OW is so bad. Same problem as Mary Poppins, a lot of people haven't seen the original, and otherwise a flying elephant in old fashioned circus times isn't a concept that screams blockbuster.

Have to believe the reviews and Burton's involvement played a role. He has a following but definitely not everyone's taste.

It did not do bad, but could have been bigger.

The ads were a bit desperate - it needed to emphasize the story more. They never should have shown Dumbo flying, leave that up in suspense.

The budget went wrong.

Agreed. I might have seen this in theaters if I didn't already see the elephant flying in the two trailers.

I thought its best case scenario for opening day half of Us’s opening day, so i was surprised that it did as well as it did.

It bombed in China with just $10m opening weekend.

Disney spent too much on the film. The budget should have been 100mil instead of 170mil.

It did do bad, and it did flop. This is a Disney live-action remake, remember! This shouldn't be praying to make it to $100m. It should have been a shoe-in for $200m!

I think David's review and Shack's comment above hit on reasons why it did badly. The original is a well-known story but not a well-beloved film, and the old fashioned setting and aesthetic paired with modern day attitudes towards animal cruelty and circuses probably contributed to it being a damp squib at the box office.

Budget too high $170 million O_o

They had to shut down the actual circus because people were uncomfortable with the treatment of the elephants. Why would anyone then want to watch a Disney movie about it? It’s lucky it made it what it did.

Apparently not as beloved as Disney thought even though it's a "classic". Not enough people are interested in a flying elephant movie.

On the Burton factor: It never really felt like a movie that would benefit much from Tim Burton's touch, though I haven't seen it. Also American Horror Story, Freak Show may have stolen a lot of thunder from the appeal of a Burton circus movie, from that crowd.

That 60% drop though. Ouch.

I'm not buying that Dumbo is one of the best-known animated stories of all-time. Maybe in like 1992 but it's a new America now. It feels like it has fallen between the cracks in terms of family classics. Mary Poppins low key feels the same way, which might explain why it underperformed especially outside of the US.

I think people just don't know/care/remember enough about Dumbo, and there's been too many live-action Disney re-imaginings. It's hard to get too worked up about what feels like a B-tier "Disney classic" when Aladdin and The Lion King, are on the way this summer. I guess Disney had to make as much money as humanly possible this year because of the Fox purchase so they just scheduled all their tentpoles for 2019 and something had to fail.

What's happening with Disney in China is fascinating and really shows how much they are relying on the nostalgia produced by Anglo-dominated global pop culture in the 20th century. China was largely closed off to the West so they didn't grow up with Disney animated classics, Star Wars, etc., and all these films look like turds to them as a result. China is a fantastic control group to see just how appealing these films are without the associated cultural baggage.

I blame Tim Burton.

There's a far superior Dumbo movie out there. And one that will make far more $$ (not necessarily the same thing). Just needed a different director.

The lack of success is due to the quality of the film and less so the prestige level of the franchise.

It's definitely Burton. There is no reason this should have cost 170 million. It's ridiculous how much money they throw at him. Burton was always at his best when he was restrained. They should have learned from The BFG and Spielberg, and that still cost 30 million less, and that looks a lot better effects wise.

Burton's production company (plus many others) helped produce Dumbo. Spielberg's (plus others) helped produce The BFG. So there is probably nothing to learn here. Disney already spread the risk by not 100% financing both.

China is a terrible control group. Even with films that have no cultural baggage, there is a huge disparity in relative grosses. Chinese tastes are just very different to American ones.

Dumbo is doing well in the UK. It will out-gross Ralph Breaks the Internet and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, and it will more than double Shazam!. All films that beat it stateside.