The New Mutants Quietly Becomes a Sleeper Hit on Streaming

MovieWeb

By Ryan Scott

Published Nov 26, 2020

After flopping at the box office The New Mutants is finding new life after arriving on VOD platforms.

The New Mutants is getting a second shot at life on streaming. The Marvel Comics adaptation, which had been delayed for years, finally made its way to theaters in August. It was released at a wildly uncertain time and, unfortunately for Disney, the movie failed to deliver at the box office. However, now that people can watch it from the comfort of home, the movie is taking in quite a bit of revenue as it topped the charts recently on two of the biggest digital retailers.

Over the most recent weekend, The New Mutants topped the charts on both FandangoNOW and Vudu. This wasn't just in terms of rentals. It was in terms of revenue. The movie is available to rent for $5.99 or purchase for $19.99 digitally. Other movies such as Mulan and Come Play are set at a premium VOD rental price of $19.99. Yet, it was the horror-themed X-Men spin-off that managed to best the competition on both platforms. The big question now is how long can the movie manage to stay on top and will that be enough to turn it into a financial success.

The New Mutants was the first blockbuster-level release to get a wide release once theaters reopened. All told, it earned just $45 million at the global box office. That would be a middling opening weekend for most superhero movies under normal circumstances. As such, it has a long way to go before it can turn a profit. But this is an encouraging start. Though it will take a whole lot of rentals and Blu-ray sales to make up the difference.

Director Josh Boone's Marvel flick was originally produced by Fox before the Disney merger. Disagreements over the creative direction eventually resulted in it being shelved until Disney gave Boone the go-ahead to finish The New Mutants. As Boone tells it, the movie we saw represents his vision. Critics and audiences did not respond terribly well to that vision. It currently holds a 33 percent critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes to go along with a 56 percent audience rating. The cast includes Blu Hunt, Henry Zaga, Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Heaton and Alice Braga.

Ultimately, this serves as the conclusion of Fox's version of the X-Men franchise. 2019's Dark Phoenix was the final, proper X-Men movie. It took bombed at the box office. But The New Mutants has the distinction of being the final entry in the franchise produced by Fox to be released before the mutants are rebooted within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. You can check out the full top ten Vudu and FandangoNOW charts below. The New Mutants is available on digital, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD now from 20th Century Studios.