Christopher Nolan discusses Tenet box-office, says studios are "drawing the wrong conclusions" from the release

Christopher Nolan has addressed Tenet's box office numbers, the director saying he's "thrilled" the time-pincering movie has made almost $350 million at the worldwide box-office. However, the filmmaker also cautioned that "studios are drawing the wrong conclusions" from the release.

While Tenet has made a huge amount worldwide, the box-office numbers are still below those that were predicted pre-pandemic – Nolan's Dunkirk made $526.9 million while Interstellar made $696.3 million, with many thinking Tenet could make similar. With the coronavirus leaving many cinemas around the world still shuttered, the results for Tenet were not as large as expected leading to multiple big-ticket movies – such as No Time To Die and Black Widow – being moved back into 2021.

"Warner Bros. released Tenet, and I’m thrilled that it has made almost $350 million," Nolan told the Los Angeles Times. "But I am worried that the studios are drawing the wrong conclusions from our release – that rather than looking at where the film has worked well and how that can provide them with much-needed revenue, they’re looking at where it hasn’t lived up to pre-COVID expectations and will start using that as an excuse to make exhibition take all the losses from the pandemic instead of getting in the game and adapting – or rebuilding our business, in other words."

Following the news that No Time To Die – the next James Bond movie – was being delayed, many cinemas across the UK and US closed their doors. With national lockdown extended in the UK, all cinemas remain closed until at least December. 

Many analysts worry that, without a big blockbuster movie to draw people back to cinemas once cinemas re-open, then some cinemas may never be able to reopen again. Nolan seemingly shares these fears and believes the industry needs to start releasing movies and rebuilding its future.

Even though cinemas are in lockdown, there are things you can do to support your local independent cinema, such as buying merch, sticking with your membership, and sponsoring a seat. Click through that link for our handy guide on what you can do to help your local cinema.