Taylor Swift Just Saved The Box Office (Again)

To say that Taylor Swift is a big star feels like an insulting understatement. At this point, Swift has asserted herself as a generational mega star, joining the ranks of the biggest pop stars of all time. Case in point: For the second time, Swift has swooped in to save the box office from what would have otherwise been a bleak, low-key weekend thanks to "The Official Release Party of a Showgirl."

Playing in theaters for just three days, the theatrically released album release part for "The Life of a Showgirl" pulled in $33 million domestically in its debut. It also pulled in another $13 million overseas for a grand total of $46 million globally. That's not at all bad, considering that "The Official Release Party of a Showgirl" wasn't announced until late September. But it didn't take long for Swifties to mobilize around the film.

Not quite a narrative film and not a concert experience, the special event promised the exclusive world premiere of the music video, "The Fate of Ophelia", along with behind-the-scenes footage from the music video shoot, new lyric videos, and Swift's personal thoughts on songs from her 12th studio album. The fact that something without full, theatrical production value garnered such attention is, in a word, impressive.

At the same time, it shouldn't come as a huge shock. 2023's "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour" concert film made nearly $250 million worldwide, helping to save what would have been a bleak fall season. But that gave audiences a chance to see "The Eras Tour" without paying the extreme prices that actual concert tickets were going for. What's remarkable about this latest stunt is that Swift mobilized her fanbase around something somewhat less spectacular. It speaks volumes about her status in the broader cultural sphere right now.

There were some casualties along the way. A24's buzzy "The Smashing Machine" starring Dwayne Johnson opened to just $6 million, which was well below the movie's pre-release box office projections. But theaters were happier to have the money Swift brought in, even if it came at The Rock's expense to some degree. It is telling that Johnson, also a massive star, was no match for Swift.

With the box office being on uncertain ground, theater chains were more than happy to welcome Swift's new film, even if they had to book it at the last minute. AMC Theatres once again distributed the movie directly, just as the chain did with "The Eras Tour." That decision annoyed Hollywood studios, but it also speaks to Swift's power. She doesn't need Hollywood. She can cut out the middle man. That's not something many artists can say.

Even amongst other big artists, it's no contest when it comes to the box office. Beyonce's "Renaissance" made a very respectable $44 million worldwide in 2023. But that pales in comparison to what "The Eras Tour" made. Metallica is one of the biggest rock bands in the world, but its concert film "Through the Never" was a sizable bomb in 2013. Metallica's "72 Seasons" release party in 2023 also had a theatrical rollout, yet it generated less than $1 million globally (a tiny fraction of Swift's recent release).

Two things are clear. One, theater chains and Hollywood should probably continue to align with pop stars to generate theatrical events based around music. It's good for business. Two, Swift has truly asserted herself as one of the biggest stars — if not the single biggest star — on the planet right now. That feels hard to deny.

"The Life of a Showgirl" is out now.