'Jobs' Biopic Starring Ashton Kutcher Bombs At US Opening Weekend Box Office

"Jobs" is shaping up to be not only a critical fumble but a commercial failure as well. Released last Friday to mostly negative reviews, the Steve Jobs biopic starring Ashton Kutcher as the title character opened in seventh place at the box office this weekend. The film earned an estimated $6.7 million from 2,381 screening locations across the U.S., according to Box Office Mojo. As pointed out by AppleInsider, that's less than distributor Open Road Films' expected yield, which ranged from $8 million to $9 million. Box Office Mojo notes:

Jobs had plenty of issues, including awful reviews and a comedy star playing dramatic (almost never a good idea). Most important, though, was the movie's apparent tonal issues: while plenty of people enjoy their Apple products, the deification of Steve Jobs is a bit of a turn off. Jobs received a weak "B-" CinemaScore, and all indications are that it will disappear from theaters quickly.

Also starring Josh Gad as Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak, "Jobs" is directed by Joshua Michael Stern from a screenplay by Matt Whiteley. The film covers the years 1971 through 2001 and chronicles the early days of Apple, through Jobs’ ouster from the company in 1985, to his return to the company years later. It's worth mentioning that "Jobs" earned less than one-third as much as "The Social Network." The 2010 film about the founding of Facebook debuted at No. 1 during its opening weekend in the U.S. at $22.4 million. As it happens, the Academy Award-winning screenwriter of "The Social Network," Aaron Sorkin, is working on a film adaptation of "Steve Jobs," Walter Isaacson's 2011 authorized biography. Perhaps that, unlike "Jobs," will turn out be quite successful, both critically and commercially.

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