Shia LaBeouf starring war drama "Man Down" was premiered in the UK and was able to gross £7, or $8.71 on the weekend. This is equivalent to the value of one ticket sales in the UK.
According to Variety, the film was released in one theater, Reel Cinema, in the town of Burnley in Northwest England and was simultaneously premiered on demand before its DVD and Blu-Ray release in May. This is speculated to be the reason of its such a poor opening along with unfavorable critics reviews through its Venice screening and US release last year.
"That opening could be some kind of Guinness World Record," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at ComScore. The film that also stars Gary Oldman, Kate Mara and Jai Courtney tells the story of a traumatized US Marine played by Shia who returns home from Afghanistan, only to find that his wife and son are missing. "Man Down" is only able to score 15% on Rotten Tomatoes and grossed $450,000 since its release, reports the NY Daily News.
The film reunites Shia LaBeouf with director Dito Montiel, who previously worked in the 2006s release "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints". The 30-year-old actor, who has starred in many big studio blockbusters such as "Transformers" and "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" has lately focused on several Indie films with mixed success. He received some strong reviews for "American Honey" but was panned by the critics and audience for "The Company You Keep" and "Charlie Countryman".
However, as reported by the People, apart from his movies, Shia has also been in the media's attention for his off-screen behavior that includes numerous alcohol arrests and participation in the protest against the Presidency of Donald Trump. With only a handful of dollars grossed in the UK premiere, let's hope Shia's upcoming sports drama titled "Borg Vs. McEnroe" will receive a positive response where he will be portraying the role of legendary tennis player John McEnroe.