The Soloist
Rate Movie[Total: 5 Average: 2.6]
- Directed By: Joe Wright
- Written By: Susannah Grant, Steve Lopez
- Release Date: April 24, 2009
- Domestic Distributor: Paramount
- Cast: Jamie Foxx, Robert Downey Jr., Catherine Keener
Box Office Info:
| Budget: $60 million | Financed by: Dreamworks; Participant Media; Working Title; StudioCanal |
|---|---|
| Domestic Gross: $31,720,158 | Overseas Gross: $6,612,836 |
The Soloist was financed for $60 million between Dreamworks, Participant Media (which finances mostly social issues films) and Working Title, which is owned by Universal and the project received some additional coin from StudioCanal — which usually invests into Working Title’s movies for rights in France and a portion of the film’s backend. The Soloist was set to be distributed by Paramount through DreamWorks’ long standing distribution arrangement.
The Soloist was originally dated for November 21, 2008 and was looked at as a potential awards contender. In October 2008, Dreamworks and Paramount ended their relationship and it has been assumed that as retribution, Paramount delayed The Soloist until 2009, so they could focus their awards attention on their Oscar hopeful The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button and they would push awards consideration for Robert Downey Jr. for Tropic Thunder instead of The Soloist (which ironically spoofed awards bait movies like this). The Soloist was also set to be the opening night film at the 2008 AFI Fest on October 30, but just one week before its premiere Paramount pulled it.
The Soloist was eventually dated for March 13, 2009 and then bumped back to April 24. Despite being moved out of the awards race, The Soloist was heavily promoted by Paramount, but it was tracking poorly. It bowed against Obsessed, Fighting and Earth. Reviews were mixed and it opened to a disappointing $9,716,458 — placing #4 for the weekend led by the silly Beyonce thriller Obsessed. The Soloist saw an ok hold next weekend with a 41.8% decline in attendance to $5,654,558 and a decent 30.2% third frame decline to $3,949,430 but the domestic run closed with a poor $31,720,158. Paramount would see back about $17.4 million after theaters take their percentage of the gross, which would be far below the domestic P&A spend.
The Soloist saw small returns overseas with just $6.6 million in theatrical receipts.