Ares’ to Lose Disney $132 Million

Jared Leto.
Illustration: Leah Gallo/Disney

it isn’t generating a profiteven at the box office. Deadline reports that Throne: Ares is set to lose $132.7 million for Disney. Previous reporting put the cost of the Jared Leto-led legacy sequel at $170 to 180 million, although it may actually be as high as $220 million. Combined with its 67 percent domestic drop-off in its second week, things are looking pretty bad. Or as one anonymous source told Deadline, “The idea that Disney would spend a quarter of a billion dollars on a Jared Leto film that is a franchise that hasn’t worked in four decades is insane.”

This is a repeat flop for both Throne Franchise and Leto. The original Throne didn’t meet expectations in the 80s, only to gain cult status in the intervening decades. Tron: Legacy did fine at the box office, but not enough to fast-track Ares, which seemed to be vaporware for a decade. Leto has also been an underperformer of late. Haunted Mansion was a flop for both Disney and Leto. House of Gucci wasn’t the awards accumulator folks hoped it would be. And Morbius bombed so bad it became a meme. But at least the Throne ride at Disney World is cool.