{"id":276479,"date":"2025-11-11T14:30:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T14:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/276479\/"},"modified":"2025-11-11T14:30:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T14:30:10","slug":"sydney-sweeneys-boxing-movie-was-a-bomb-why-do-we-keep-making-boxing-biopics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/276479\/","title":{"rendered":"Sydney Sweeney\u2019s boxing movie was a bomb. Why do we keep making boxing biopics?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n Sydney Sweeney\u2019s latest movie was down for the count in its opening weekend at the box office.\n <\/p>\n

\n According to the receipts from Box Office Mojo<\/a>, \u201cChristy,\u201d a boxer biopic, was released in more than 2,000 theaters but took in just $1.3 million on opening weekend.\n <\/p>\n

\n Boxing movies about real people have a tough time connecting with audiences.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cIf \u2018Christy\u2019 gave even one woman the courage to take her first step toward safety, then we will have succeeded,\u201d Sweeney wrote on Instagram on Monday. \u201cSo yes I\u2019m proud. Why? Because we don\u2019t always just make art for numbers, we make it for impact.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n The film tells the story of Christy Martin, a pioneering American boxer, who survived a murder attempt by her trainer-spouse. (Martin is now married <\/a>to a former competitor<\/a>, Lisa Holewyne.)\n <\/p>\n

\n Sweeney is an A-list star but this year she\u2019s been featured in more controversy-centered headlines<\/a> about her advertising work than she has been in successful<\/a> film and TV projects. That attention she\u2019s gotten has not immediately resulted in people in seats this year.\n <\/p>\n

\n What happened here? The truth about boxing films in general and boxing films starring women may have some answers.\n <\/p>\n

\"Ryan<\/p>\n

\n Last year\u2019s \u201cThe Fire Inside\u201d starred Ryan Destiny. She played female boxer Claressa \u201cT-Rex\u201d Shields, who competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics and has held multiple championships across various weight classes.\n <\/p>\n

\n It got positive reviews, but only earned $1.96 million in its opening weekend, picking up to $8 million during its entire domestic run, according to Box Office Mojo.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cAgainst the Ropes,\u201d a 2004 fictionalized version of the life of boxing manager Jackie Kallen, starring Meg Ryan, garnered negative reviews and slim big box office receipts to match.\n <\/p>\n

\"Charles<\/p>\n

\n That played a role in Ryan stepping out of the field for a bit. During a 2019 interview with the New York Times<\/a> Ryan was asked if \u201cAgainst the Ropes\u201d and another film, \u201cIn the Cut,\u201d \u201chad been better received by critics or audiences\u201d would she have still have taken a break from her Hollywood career, as she did.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI think the feeling with Hollywood was mutual,\u201d Ryan said at the time. \u201cI felt done when they felt done, probably.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n What about boxing movies about men? \u201cHands of Stone,\u201d the Robert De Niro film about Roberto Dur\u00e1n, opened widely in 2016 and seems to<\/a> have tracked very similarly to \u201cChristy,\u201d with a weak opening weekend and a slow follow.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Miles Teller biopic of Vinny Pazienza, \u201cBleed for This,\u201d similarly<\/a> failed to fill theaters. \u201cPhantom Punch,\u201d the 2009 Sonny Liston biopic starring Ving Rhames, performed so poorly it has been almost erased from the permanent record.<\/a>\n <\/p>\n

\n It might feel like audiences, despite their love<\/a> of \u201cRaging Bull\u201d and the \u201cRocky\u201d franchise, just don\u2019t love biographical boxing movies about real people that much.\n <\/p>\n

\n Except, every once in a while, one film proves an exception to the rule. \u201cThe Fighter,\u201d David O. Russell\u2019s fictionalized biography of boxer Micky Ward, was a rare worldwide smash in 2010. Ron Howard\u2019s 2005 \u201cCinderella Man,\u201d about James J. Braddock and starring Russell Crowe, was also a rare critical and commercial success.\n <\/p>\n

\n The best-known women\u2019s boxing films aren\u2019t biopics.\n <\/p>\n

\n Michelle Rodriguez made her movie acting debut in \u201cGirlfight,\u201d a fictional independent film. She played a hot-tempered teen who decides to channel her anger into boxing. The very inexpensive film didn\u2019t pull in a ton of money, but it did launch Rodriguez\u2019s movie career, which has included the billion-dollar \u201cFast & Furious\u201d franchise. It also made a name for Karyn Kusama, who later directed \u201cJennifer\u2019s Body\u201d and is an executive producer of \u201cYellowjackets.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\"Clint<\/p>\n

\n Then there\u2019s the biggest of them all: the fictional 2004 film \u201cMillion Dollar Baby.\u201d Not only did it find commercial success, it met wide critical acclaim. It won best picture at the Academy Awards and stars Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman won best actress and best supporting actor, respectively. Clint Eastwood, who pushed for the film to be made and costarred as well, also won a best director Oscar.\n <\/p>\n