Disney’s ‘Alice’ Flopped More Than Fell Through Looking Glass

Walt Disney Co.’s “Alice” knocked back a bit too much pishsalver potion over the Memorial Day weekend, shrinking her take at the North American box office and falling far short of analysts’ predictions.

“Alice Through the Looking Glass,” with Mia Wasikowska and Johnny Depp returning as Alice and the Mad Hatter, brought in $34.2 million over the four-day holiday weekend, industry researcher Comscore said in a statement. That trailed the Marvel Comics-based “X-Men: Apocalypse,” the seventh installment in a series about mutant humans with extraordinary powers, which at $80 million was in line with forecasts.

The Disney film, which Box Office Mojo estimates cost about $170 million to make, trailed the $52 million to $62 million predicted by analysts. In the latest twist on the Lewis Carroll story, Alice travels back in time to save Wonderland from becoming a barren wasteland. Critics weren’t as kind as they were with the first Alice revival film in 2010, with just 30 percent giving positive reviews, according to Rottentomatoes.

The take for all films was $204 million, a 4.2 percent gain from a year earlier, Comscore reported. Among the top 10 movies, there was an 8.1 percent increase to $197.1 million.

“X-Men” is one of three big summer releases from the movie division of 21st Century Fox Inc. The studio had a surprise hit with “Deadpool” in February, a spinoff from the franchise. Though this latest installment may not beat 2014’s “Days of Future Past,” its weekend take shows enduring demand for the genre.

Oscar Isaac plays Apocalypse, the first and most powerful mutant, who awakens after thousands of years and recruits a team, including Magneto, to create a new world order. James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jennifer Lawrence reprise their roles. Critics were split on the movie, with 47 percent providing positive reviews at Rottentomatoes.com. The previous film scored 91 percent.

“X-Men: Apocalypse” was forecast to generate $69 million over three days and $82 million over four days, according to analysts at BoxOfficePro.com, while the studio was predicting more than $80 million through Monday. The picture cost $178 million to produce, according to Box Office Mojo.

To contact the reporters on this story: Anousha Sakoui in Los Angeles at asakoui@bloomberg.net, Kevin Miller in Chicago at kmiller@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Crayton Harrison at tharrison5@bloomberg.net, Kevin Miller, Julie Alnwick