Robert De Niro’s new film The Alto Knights had a disastrous opening, earning just $3.2 million against a $45–$50 million budget. This is what happens when you alienate half your audience!
In a surprising turn of the events, Robert de Niro’s last film adventure, The Alto Knights, has stumbled from the beginning, leaving the experts of the industry and fans scratching their heads. The film, in which the legendary actor interprets two roles such as the rival mafia chiefs Frank Costello and Vito Genovese, was destined to be a triumphant return to the genre of Gánsters that made De Niro a recognized name. However, its collection of only 3.2 million dollars at the domestic box office during the premiere weekend – in front of an estimated production budget between 45 and 50 million dollars – has marked it as one of the most significant failures of the year. For an important launch of a study like Warner Bros., distributed in 2,800 cinemas, this performance is nothing less than catastrophic.
The Alto Knights, directed by Barry Levinson and written by the Goodfellas screenwriter, Nicholas Pileggi, promised a historical and raw immersion in the world of organized crime of New York in the 1950 I could relive a genre that has largely lost its attractive mainstream. However, the numbers tell a different story. Abroad, the film had even worse performance, adding only 1.8 million dollars to its global total, which takes the world total to miserable 5.1 million dollars. This low performance raises questions about what went wrong with a project that, in theory, seemed a successful success.
A predominant theory is that De Niro’s open political position could have played a role in the failure of the film. Over the years, the actor has been a relentless critic of former president Donald Trump, frequently using public platforms to report it without surroundings. His outbursts loaded with rudeness, including a remarkable moment in the Tony Awards of 2018 where he declared “F *** Trump” against a crowd that cheered him, have made him a polarizing figure. For a significant portion of the American public – especially those aligned with conservative values - this rhetoric has transformed De Niro into a symbol of Hollywood elitism. Publications in social networks on platforms such as X have taken advantage of this narrative, with users suggesting that low film assistance is a direct result that Niro away half of his potential audience. “This is what happens when you, despicable scoundrel, move away your fans!” A user exclaimed, echoing a feeling that has won online traction.
Although it is impossible to quantify exactly how much Niro’s policy impacted in ticket sales, the idea of the public’s alienation is not far -fetched in today’s polarized climate. Hollywood has dealt for a long time with the challenge of balancing the personal beliefs of the stars with their public characters, and De Niro’s case can serve as a warning. His last great box office success, Joker of 2019, raised more than 335 million dollars at domestic level, but that film relied strongly on the DC Comics brand and a broader cultural Zeitgeist. The Alto Knights, on the contrary, is an original story without an attraction of incorporated franchise, depending almost entirely on De Niro’s stellar power and the nostalgia of mafia films – a bet that clearly did not pay off.
Beyond politics, other factors probably contributed to the fall of the film. Critics have been warm, with The Alto Knights obtaining a 37% rating in Rotten Tomatoes. The reviews have indicated the trick of the dual roles as confusing and unnecessary, with some suggesting that he distracted from history instead of enriching it. The audience he attended gave him a “B” qualification in Cinemascore, indicating a warm reception that failed to generate the mouth impulse necessary to save his run. In addition, the genre of mafia itself can be fashionable. Even the acclaimed Killers of the Flower Moon by Martin Scorsese, who had De Niro with Leonardo DiCaprio, struggled to recover his budget of 200 million dollars, noting that the public no longer goes mass to the epic of crime as he did before.
Warner Bros. now faces a uphill battle. The recent study of the study has been unstable, with The Alto Knights following the disappointing Mickey 17, another projected high budget failure to lose more than 75 million dollars. For The Alto Knights to reach the equilibrium point, it would need to raise at least $ 125 million worldwide – a goal that seems unattainable given its current trajectory. A change to streaming or video on demand could offer some financial recovery, since criminal dramas often find a second life with online niche audiences. However, the failure in cinemas is a blow for both the studio and De Niro, whose legacy as a box office attraction has received an impact.
In the end, the disastrous openness of The Alto Knights serves as a raw reminder of the risks inherent in modern cinema. Either a case of a poorly judged audience, an exhausted genre or a star whose person off the screen has eclipsed his talent on the screen, the collapse of the film underlines the delicate balance that Hollywood must maintain. For De Niro, a cinema titan with an unparalleled race, this failure may not define his legacy – but certainly poses the question: in an era of division, can the best actors allow to alienate half of their audience?
Error 500 (Server Error)!!1500.That’s an error.There was an error. Please try again later.That’s all we know.
