Why Journalists Consider 'Joker' More Profitable Than 'Avengers: Infinity War' and 'Endgame'

Journalists commonly assert that Joker is more profitable than Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. This assertion is based on a closer examination of the profits, which take into account not just revenues but the returns on the investment made.

Profit as a Measure of Success

Profit is defined as revenues minus expenses. When measuring profit, journalists and financial analysts go beyond just looking at revenues and instead focus on the returns they received for the investment they put in.

Exploring the Data of 'Endgame'

Avengers: Endgame

Endgame cost a reported 356 million USD to produce and generated 2.789 billion USD in box office revenues. This results in a 7.67x return on investment (ROI). Generally, a movie has to return double to triple its budget just to break even, considering additional costs like marketing and distribution. If we assume Endgame needed to triple its budget to break even at 1.095 billion USD, then it has made an additional 1.703 billion USD.

The per dollar spent on Endgame resulted in a significant return, approximately 4.67 times the initial investment. However, this does not necessarily indicate a more profitable film than Joker.

Profitability of 'Joker'

Joker

Joker had a production budget of about 62.5 million USD and is set to gross over 1 billion USD. Using similar assumptions, it would generate more than 16x its production budget in returns. Thus, per dollar spent, Joker may have made even more impressive profits compared to Endgame.

The increased returns on Joker indicate a more profitable investment overall.

Critique of Common Profit Calculations

Journalists and media often use a simplified formula to calculate movie profitability:

- 50% of box office gross

minus

production budget

minus

a made-up marketing number

This calculation is flawed for several reasons:

1. Studio Profit Sharing: Studios typically do not get a fixed 50% of box office gross. According to industry insiders, they often get a higher percentage on opening days. This is a business inefficiency if the producer is bearing the costs of production and marketing yet splitting the gross with the distributor.

2. Unverifiable Marketing Numbers: The marketing budget is a made-up number that might be based on specific examples, but it is not a set figure. In reality, marketing can be covered through joint marketing initiatives, such as partnerships with brands or in-house marketing channels owned by the studios.

3. Product Placement: The media often does not include product placement revenue, even though it has been shown to significantly increase a movie's profitability. For example, Man of Steel made 160 million USD on product placement alone.

Without including these factors, the calculation becomes inaccurate and largely pointless.

Context and Misinterpretations

It's possible that journalists or articles have misread or misinterpreted data. For instance, Joker might be considered the highest grossing R-rated movie, or it might have been relatively more profitable due to its smaller production budget.

Ultimately, while Endgame generated massive revenues, the higher returns on Joker make it a more profitable choice when considering the initial investment and overall investment return.