Kristen Stewart’s ‘Spencer’ Fails To Secure Big Box Office Opening Despite Raves

Despite the rave reviews for Kristen Stewart’s performance as the late Princess Diana, “Spencer” failed to deliver in terms of ticket sales during its opening weekend.

For its three-day debut at the box office, Neon’s “Spencer” only managed to rake in a total of $2.149 million despite screening in 996 cinemas. Official numbers collected by Deadline showed that the film earned an estimated $783,110 on Friday, $780,697 on Saturday and $585,522 on Sunday.

The entertainment news site said that Stewart’s movie, which centered on the few fateful days of Diana at the Queen’s Sandringham Estate when her marriage to Prince Charles imploded, failed to connect in a market that does not really favor specialty and independent movies.

The numbers suggest that it’s going to be an uphill battle for “Spencer” and other specialty films to bring in that older audience back to theaters in time for the holiday season amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as per The Wrap.

Despite the disappointing reception during its first weekend in cinemas, “Spencer” will likely have a long run at the box office as awards buzz builds. After all, the feature has gotten rave reviews from critics, and it is also among the titles that are rumored to snag recognitions during the awards season.

Back in September when the film premiered at the Venice Film Festival, Stewart’s portrayal of the late royal received a three-minute standing ovation from the crowd. The movie also generated a lot of buzz online, with many critics taking to Twitter to share their prediction that the actress could get her first Oscar for the film.

“Future Oscar winner Kristen Stewart is so relaxed and carefree for the #Spencer press tour,” writer and editor Stephanie Guerilus tweeted at the time.

“‘Spencer’ is haunting & deeply complex character study. A phenomenal film, easily one of the years best. You will not see a better performance this year than Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana. Brilliant filmmaking, storytelling, & score. Kristen is a lock for Oscars. #SpencerMovie,” film critic Scott Menzel wrote.

The project also got the approval of British journalist and royal commentator Jonathan Sacerdoti, who told Us Weekly in August that the late Princess of Wales would have been grateful for having a movie about her.

“I think that she would probably be pleased that her memory is still alive for so many people and that it’s done in a sensitive and sympathetic way,” Sacerdoti added.