'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' has a disappointing opening weekend

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
(Image credit: Disney / Lucasfilm)

Audiences apparently weren't jonesing for one last Indy adventure.

"Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," Harrison Ford's farewell to the role of Indiana Jones, grossed $60 million domestically in its opening weekend. It was a disappointing showing for a film that reportedly cost close to $300 million, and it was also a decline from "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which had a three-day debut of $100 million in 2008.

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Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave "Dial of Destiny" a B+. That's an improvement on "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which received a B, and the film currently holds an 89 percent Rotten Tomatoes audience score. So word of mouth suggesting this is a better Indy finale than "Crystal Skull" could help boost the film at the box office in the coming weeks and on the Fourth of July holiday.

But "Dial of Destiny" is certainly getting off on the wrong foot, continuing a summer filled with box office disappointments and coming right after DC's "The Flash" bombed with a $55 million opening. Perhaps audiences simply don't connect with Indiana Jones the way they used to, suggesting the legendary archaeologist himself has become an artifact of another era.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.