According to Variety, The Northman” is projected to earn $10 million to $15 million in its first three days of release.
Not bad for a film that is R-rated with 3,000 theatres.
I think Focus got scared what happened to The Last Duel. It went to Venice and then the bad reactions came but later it became a well reviewed film. Basically the hype went down and the bo could not recover.
The Last Duel was marketed as a historical drama that was supposed to contend in the award season. The Northman seems to market like The Green Knight but more action packed/commercial.