Are Studio Comedies Becoming Box Office Poison?

gamerant.com:

Billy Eichner recently caused a minor controversy on Twitter when he blamed straight people for the box office underperformance of his new LGBTQ-themed romcom Bros. Eichner, the star and co-writer of the film, tweeted, “Straight people, especially in certain parts of the country, just didn’t show up for Bros.” While it may be true that some homophobic moviegoers avoided this film on the basis of its subject matter, there are many other factors that contributed to Bros’ commercial failure.

The trailers for Bros were too busy pointing out its historic status as the first studio romcom about a same-sex couple to show how funny the movie is. It was released at the end of September, just before the spooky season typically reserved for horror films like Smile, Hellraiser, and Halloween Ends. Ticket to Paradise, another romantic comedy released in the same window, is bolstered by the star power of George Clooney and Julia Roberts. Bros, on the other hand, doesn’t have any famous faces in its cast. Eichner is the biggest star in the movie, and he’s a C-lister at best. And on top of all that, it’s simply been a really long time since a large audience came out to theaters to see a comedy of any kind.

Holmes & Watson Squandered A Great Premise

Less than a decade ago, a lackluster star-driven comedy like Identity Thief or Let’s Be Cops or The Wedding Ringer could easily succeed at the box office. But that was before moviegoing audiences began seeking humor in blockbusters like Deadpool, Thor: Ragnarok, and Guardians of the Galaxy, and before the film industry was ravaged by a global pandemic. Almost every major comedy film release of the 2020s has disappointed at the box office, from star-studded comedies (Like a Boss) to family