What Went Wrong? Jennifer Lawrence’s New Film Stumbles Out of the Gate at the Box Office

Jennifer Lawrence is back in serious-drama mode with Lynne Ramsay, but the first weekend for their Cannes title 'Die My Love' came in softer than hoped. The film opened wide, it had pedigree, it had buzz, and still... the numbers were rough.

The opening, in plain English

'Die My Love' launched to $2.83 million from 1,983 theaters, according to Box Office Mojo. For a star-led psychological drama with Cannes heat and an awards push, that is below expectations. Lawrence plays Grace, a writer and mother coming apart at the seams while living in isolation with her partner Jackson. It is a deliberately intense watch, which often means the box office is a slower burn. Still, this weekend was a stress test, and the test did not go great.

The weekend was crowded

The overall marketplace was packed with attention-grabbers, and the big dog was 'Predator: Badlands,' which topped the chart. Specialty releases actually put up some healthy pockets of business, even if the field felt jammed.

"Everybody is vying for audiences and there is some crossover with all of these movies, so it is a little tough from that perspective."

That tracks with how the numbers shook out across the board:

• Russell Crowe drama 'Nuremberg' pulled $4.15 million from 1,802 locations, ranking fifth among wide releases.
• Joachim Trier's 'Sentimental Value' did $200,000 on just four screens, a $50,000 per-theater average. That is the best PTA for a foreign-language title since before the pandemic. Sony Pictures Classics co-chair Michael Barker framed it as a story people are hungry for and timely to the moment.
• David Michod's 'Christy' (with Sydney Sweeney playing boxer Christy Martin) opened to $1.3 million.
• Focus Features' 'Bugonia' picked up $3.5 million in its third weekend for a $12.3 million total to date.
• Amazon MGM's faith-leaning 'Sarah's Oil' took in $4.5 million.

Mubi is playing the long game

Mubi is distributing 'Die My Love' in a spread of territories including the U.K., Germany, Italy, Spain, and Australia. The reported $2.83 million is strictly from the domestic opening. International figures are still under wraps, so we will see how the overseas rollout shapes the picture.

How this sets up the awards push

Trade chatter keeps calling the film an awards contender, and Lawrence is drawing raves for what some are labeling a career-defining performance. At the same time, early audience response is mixed, which is not shocking given the film's unflinching subject matter. Ramsay makes tough, precision-cut character studies, and those tend to travel better with critics and voters than with casual weekend crowds.

Bottom line: a rough domestic start for 'Die My Love' on a weekend where a lot of films were elbowing for the same space. If this one is going to build, it probably happens via word of mouth, critics groups, and international legs rather than instant gratification at the multiplex.