A Man Called Otto has proven to be a box office hit, even though the movie has been largely forgotten by audiences and not in awards season conversation. The film follows the titular character, Tom Hank's Otto Anderson, a grumpy 63-year-old widower who, by the end of A Man Called Otto, changes his attitude towards his neighborhood as a young family moves next door. A Man Called Otto initially received a limited theatrical release in Los Angeles and New York at the end of 2022, before moving to a wide release at the beginning of 2023 both in the US and worldwide.
While the film features beloved actor Tom Hanks in the lead role and received plenty of praise, A Man Called Otto is not very much discussed for a film that is such a box office hit. Box office is always seen as an important figure for the success of a movie. In fact, box office data and the often-mention $100 million box office threshold, particularly for a smaller, lower-budget movie, are two valuable metrics for a movie of A Man Called Otto's size.
Tom Hanks' A Man Called Otto Hit The $100 Million Box Office Milestone
A Man Called Otto recently hit a box office milestone as it crossed the $100 million worldwide threshold. Although this is a significant achievement in itself, it is especially impressive considering the movie's target audience, aimed more at an older adult audience than other popular films, and considering the difficult period that theatrical distribution and box office have been facing ever since the beginning of the pandemic. Moreover, A Man Called Otto's budget is reported $50 million, thus making this $100 million milestone even more significant for its revenue.
The film did well commercially since its opening weekend, allowing A Man Called Otto to cross a box office crucial point. In fact, A Man Called Otto grossed $60,000 during its limited release across four theaters in Los Angeles and New York in the three-day weekend of the limited release. Naturally, the box office number grew as A Man Called Otto's release expanded in other territories both in the U.S. and worldwide, as it now earned a total $61.3 million in the U.S. and Canada, with an added $39.2 million in other territories.
Why A Man Called Otto Is A Success (Despite Nobody Talking About It)
Looking at its box office numbers, it is safe to consider A Man Called Otto a success. However, nobody is talking about the movie. Hank's presence may explain the success of the film, despite the lack of conversation around it. However, a film like A Man Called Otto may not be as popular as other recent movies given that it does not have buzz among younger viewers that is the main catalyst that drives conversation around new releases.
Moreover, A Man Called Otto is not attached to any award, thus missing out on the award buzz. Perhaps it is also a question of timing. Hanks is already associated with one of last year's films that has lately been receiving a lot of attention. Hanks played Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, which has received countless award nominations, including multiple Academy Award nominations. Therefore, the attention regarding Hank's recent projects at the moment seems to be solely focused on Elvis perhaps at the expense of his other movie, A Man Called Otto.