A New Fantasy Movie Set Unwanted Box Office Record For Andrew Garfield

Despite being based on a best-selling novel, "The Magic Faraway Tree" didn't find much love at the box office over the weekend. The family-friendly fantasy flick, which stars Andrew Garfield ("The Amazing Spider-Man") and Claire Foy ("The Crown"), opened in North America and, despite having some success internationally, it just didn't resonate for audiences in the U.S. So much so that it now holds an unwanted record for Garfield as an actor.

Released by Vertical Entertainment and directed by Ben Gregor, "The Magic Faraway Tree" opened to just $1.3 million domestically on 1,611 screens, failing to crack the top 10. It opened below the ultra post-modern slasher flick "Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma" ($1.9 million), which is only playing on 1,036 screens. The movie rolled out internationally beginning in March, and it has thus far made $30.6 million worldwide, giving it a $32 million global running total. 

"The Magic Faraway Tree" now owns the record for the worst opening weekend for any wide-release movie Garfield has ever been in. The previous record was "Lions for Lambs," which Garfield starred alongside Tom Cruise in before his "Spider-Man" days. It opened to just $6.7 million. Garfield has been in movies with much smaller openings, such as "99 Homes," but they were either indie flicks or movies that started in limited release. As far as wide releases go, this is by far his lowest-earning start domestically.

The movie follows Polly (Foy), Tim (Garfield), and their three children as they begin a new life in the remote countryside. When the kids discover a magical tree hidden near their home, they are welcomed by its extraordinary residents and swept into spectacular, fantastical lands beyond their wildest imagination. It's based on the series of books by Enid Blyton.

Competition, in theory, wasn't an enormous issue. "Insidious: Out of the Further" was the biggest newcomer at the box office, opening to $25.1 million. But that was a horror movie, very much aimed at a different crowd. "Toy Story 5" and "Minions & Monsters" have both fallen out of the top 10, and "Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie" isn't a monster hit. Audiences just didn't turn up for this one.

It's worth pointing out that the distributor behind "The Magic Faraway Tree," Vertical Entertainment, with all due respect, doesn't exactly have an impressive track record with big box office hits. Vertical released "Desert Warrior," literally the biggest box office flop of all time, in 2026 as well. They're a smaller distributor that often takes domestic rights to movies as a low-risk investment. In this case, it didn't pan out, just as it didn't pan out with Sydney Sweeney's flop "Eden" and other titles the company has been associated with.

While this movie is destined to eventually find an audience on streaming, it most certainly shouldn't be placed upon Andrew Garfield's shoulders as a commercial misfire he needs to bear the weight of. Not unlike how "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" was a box office success that still killed the franchise, this has very little to do with Garfield. The movie didn't fail because of his performance. If anything, it's going to benefit from his presence down the line.

More than anything, it's an indictment of the sorts of movies that still struggle to break out in the current landscape. The box office has generally looked quite good in 2026, but there's still room for improvement.

"The Magic Faraway Tree" is in theaters now.