The popular OTT platform Netflix last Friday released the ‘The Gray Man’ — Russo Brothers action thriller starring Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans and Dhanush. “The Gray Man” was directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, the brothers behind “Avengers: Endgame” and other blockbusters from Walt Disney Co`s Marvel Studios, which typically spends $150 million or more to market action movies.
According to IMDbPro, The Gray Man made $249,462 worldwide in the box office. The company gave it a $200 million budget. It was the weekend`s most-watched Netflix movie in 84 countries. The company ordered a sequel and a spinoff. “Gosling and The Russo Brothers are set to return for the sequel. “The Gray Man” co-writer Stephen McFeely, whose credits also include “Avengers: Endgame” and “Captain America: Civil War”, is writing the screenplay, IANS reported.
The Russos told Netflix they wanted the company to make a big splash with “The Gray Man.” “We tend to make movies of a certain scale that require a larger platform for release, a larger media push. And they were game for it,” Joe Russo was quoted as saying by Reuters .
More than 100 “Gray Man” TV ads ran globally during live sporting events from the Monaco Grand Prix to the NBA Finals and shows such as “Big Brother” and “The Bachelorette.” “The Gray Man” logged 88.6 million viewing hours over the past weekend, ranking as the fifth-highest film debut ever on the streaming service.
Before it hit Netflix, “The Gray Man” played exclusively for one week in 1,500 theaters worldwide. While promotions mentioned the theatrical run. According to a report from IANS, buoyed by the audience response to “The Gray Man”, Netflix, according to ‘Variety’, has grand plans to turn the $200-million action thriller into a sprawling spy franchise. “The audience reaction to ‘The Gray Man’ has been nothing short of phenomenal,” “The Gray Man” helmers Joe and Anthony Russo said in a statement.
