With the boxoffice recovery continuing to show momentum, it’s perfect timing for Disney to be moving forward on CRUELLA 2.
Having Emma Stone (pictured) on board for the sequel — rejoining director Craig Gillespie & co-writer Tony McNamara — shows Hollywood can generate franchises despite pandemic pressures. CRUELLA opened 5/28 to $26.5M for the four day Memorial Day weekend, but no numbers were revealed for its day & date Disney+ debut with a $29.99 upcharge to subscribers.
CRUELLA did $221.9M worldwide — with $85.8M/DOM & $136.1M/INT, okay numbers considering how many theatres were still closed or had capacity restrictions then. Clearly, the PG-13 crime comedy’s global revenues from Disney+ added enough to justify a sequel.
Stone signing on is especially good news for Disney — not just because it will have a CRUELLA sequel, but because Stone hasn’t followed in Scarlett Johansson’s footsteps to go to war with the studio over its day & date release strategy. Media buzz earlier this summer suggested Stone might do just that. It also helps a lot that JUNGLE CRUISE superstar Dwayne Johnson hasn’t voiced unhappiness over the issue.