Pharrell’s Piece by Piece LEGO movie debuted in cinemas in the US on Friday, but has failed to pull in substantial audiences at the domestic box office.
Deadline reports that the biopic grossed just $3.8 million across its opening weekend, against a budget of $16 million (before prints and advertising, referring to the physical movie prints distributed to cinemas and the film’s marketing). That’s despite Piece by Piece sitting at a healthy 81% critics’ rating and 93% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The movie – which takes viewers on a journey through the life and career of musician Pharrell Williams, told via the medium of LEGO bricks and minifigures – opened against cult horror flick Terrifier 3, SNL comedy Saturday Night and Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice, which pulled in $18.3m, $3.4m and $1.58m respectively. Deadline notes that Terrifier 3's box office performance marks another win for independent genre cinema, especially given its relatively subdued marketing budget.
Compare that to Piece by Piece, which has its own tie-in LEGO set, premiered at Toronto International Film Festival and has enjoyed plenty of marketing from Pharrell himself (see his stint on Hot Ones and his visit home), and the LEGO movie’s returns will paint a disappointing picture for Universal and Focus Features. But this is only the beginning for the biopic, which will premiere internationally in the weeks and months to come.
That staggered release means UK viewers won’t be able to see it until November 8, while LEGO fans in Germany and Denmark (the home of the brick, let’s not forget) will have to wait until January to watch the movie – so the full picture of Piece by Piece’s box office performance won’t be constructed until 2025. Click here to check out the complete breakdown of international release dates.
The film’s tie-in LEGO set 10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams is available now.
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