The Cat in the Hat box office: budget, break-even and worldwide total

Nov 6

Opening day. Numbers start after its first weekend.

Budget: $70.0M–$90.0M; ReelMatrix estimate
Opening forecast: $25.0M–$35.0M; Box Office Theory, Oct 23
Domestic total forecast: $108M–$144M
Needs to make (est.): $172M–$277M; ReelMatrix estimate

About the film

The Cat (voiced by Bill Hader) gets one last chance to keep his magic hat: help two siblings settle into a new town, which goes about as calmly as you'd expect.

Watch the trailer

Show the math

Break-even

Production budget (ReelMatrix estimate): $70.0M–$90.0M
Marketing (estimated for a major studio): $42.0M–$90.0M
Total cost: $112M–$180M
Studio's share of each ticket dollar: 45¢
Later: home, streaming and TV: +20¢
Break-even worldwide: $172M–$277M

Total cost ÷ 65¢ per box office dollar. That's 2.5–3.1× the budget. The studio's share blends 50¢ domestic, 40¢ international and 25¢ in China, weighted by this film's mix: 50% from the US and Canada, a ReelMatrix estimate (The Grinch (2018) earned 53% in the US and Canada).

Projection

Before release, the projection uses the middle of the forecast domestic total ($108M–$144M).

Domestic finish: ~$126M
Worldwide finish: ~$252M

Worldwide finish = domestic finish ÷ 50%, until real international numbers come in.

Verdict: On the bubble. How verdicts work