“Parasite,” the surprise Best Picture winner at the Academy Awards, has been a particularly poor performer at the box office. The South Korean film, which was released on November 8 in the United States, has done domestic ticket sales of just over $35 million.
As a contrast, “Joker,” was another candidate for Best Picture, had domestic box office sales of $335 million, the top among the Best Picture nominees. “Parasite” ranked only sixth among these films.
The “Parasite” win shows that box office success may mean little or nothing when the Academy’s members pick the top film. Ticket sales were not even lifted by strong reviews. “Parasite” received a 99% rating among critics tallied by review site Rotten Tomatoes. It received an audience score of 92%. Both figures are unusually high.
The movie, with the South Korean title “Gisaengchung,” uses English subtitles for audiences in the United States, which makes the movie an even less likely success. It is already available to stream and on DVD and Blu-Ray, which is unusual for a film released so recently.
“Parasite” joins a list of other Best Pictures that did poorly at the box office. “Rebecca” did $6 million in 1940. The year before, “Gone with The Wind” did $198 million. “Gentleman’s Agreement” did $7.8 million in 1947. The year before, “The Best Years of Our Lives” did $26.3 million. “Gigi” did $7.3 million in 1958. Best Picture “Ben-Hur” did $73 million in 1959. “A Man for All Seasons” did $28.4 million in 1966, the year before “The Sound of Music” did $163 million. “Braveheart” grossed $75.5 million in 1995. The year before, “Forrest Gump” grossed $330 million.
Does a good box office showing help a movie win the Academy Award for Best Picture? Apparently not.
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