Stonewall crashes at US box office amid boycott
Gay rights drama Stonewall has failed to make any significant impact at the US box office, amid a sustained boycott.
The Roland Emmerich film is based on the 1969 Stonewall riots, which are often considered the birthplace of the gay rights movement.
Prior to release, the film came under fire amid claims of whitewashing and trans-erasure, after the first trailer suggested it would be centred on a white middle-class gay hero.
Though Emmerich and the film’s star Jeremy Irvine both defended it, it has been panned by critics and audiences alike.
Figures released today show the extent of the film’s woes, failing to make a solid impact at the US box office, and falling well short of expectations.
According to Indiewire, the film raked in just $112,414 over its opening weekend, despite costing over $17 million to make.
The loss is likely to be felt hard by Independence Day director Emmerich, who gambled on the film using his own money.
The film placed 29th on the rankings across its opening weekend, beaten by nearly every other major release.
It was shown in 129 theatres, with average takings at a measly $871 – which equates to just 107 people bothering to turn up to see the film per theatre, combining all opening weekend screenings.
Even a last-minute controversy couldn’t save the film, with director Roland Emmerich claiming he based his film around a “straight-acting” gay man so the film didn’t put off straight audiences.
He claimed last week: “You have to understand one thing: I didn’t make this movie only for gay people, I made it also for straight people.
“I kind of found out, in the testing process, that actually, for straight people, [Danny] is a very easy in.
“Danny’s very straight-acting. He gets mistreated because of that. [Straight audiences] can feel for him.”
Given the film’s commercial and critical failure, it’s safe to say that the straight-acting hero failed to attract audiences, gay or straight.
