Armed Citizen Stops Mass Stabbing

Most of the media, apparently, doesn't want to recognize that this maniac was stopped by a good guy with a gun, who was not a cop.

The New York Post is open to the facts. At least 11 stabbed at Traverse City Walmart in terrifying scene before armed shopper helped detain knife-wielding madman

At least 11 people were stabbed in a bloody scene inside a Michigan Walmart Saturday night — causing terrified shoppers and employees to flee — before a brave armed citizen helped detain the knife-wielding maniac, according to police, witnesses and harrowing video.

The terror unfolded around 5 p.m. when the alleged 42-year-old male attacker began randomly stabbing shoppers with a “standard” folding knife in various sections of the big-box chain store in Traverse City, about 255 miles northwest of Detroit, Grand Traverse County Sheriff Michael Shea said.

Why don't the media as a whole want to recognize the role that legal concealed carry played in this incident? Because they hate guns, and gun owners, and they only want to push the narrative that guns make everyone unsafe. A law abiding gun owner stops a maniac with a knife. How does that promote the narrative?

Thankfully there are a few outlets like the NY Post where they don't let their bias dictate coverage.

The knife-wielding monster was ultimately taken down by a pair of brave shoppers, including one who was armed, before authorities arrived and took him into custody, according to police and witnesses.

This is Colion Noir's video Caught On Camera Armed Citizen Stops Walmart Mass Stabbing Of 11 People.

A man with a folding knife went full Michael Myers and Traverse City, Michigan, stabbing not one, not two, but 11 people in a Walmart before someone finally said, "Nah, not today," and stopped him. The only way you stop a psychopath with a knife, with a gun. But you wouldn't know that if you watch most of the news coverage. They're allergic to saying the word "gun," unless it's in the same sentence as "ban."

The video is just over 9 minutes, but worth the time. It includes a news story from a local station.

Cities and States v National Immigration Law

We had to pass the law, so that sanctuary cities and states could see what was in it. Or something. Federal Funds for Local Obedience: Immigration Clause Puts Dems in Bind | RealClearPolitics

A little-noticed provision in the “Big Beautiful Bill” forces blue states and cities to make a tough choice: Comply with federal immigration law or lose federal money for criminal justice aid.

As it should be. But hey, they can do without. I think it should have said "all federal funds," but it's a start.

Hat tip to William Teach at Pirate's Cove. Oops: BBB Includes Provision Blocking Federal Funds From Sanctuary Jurisdictions

Usually the GOP goes all squishy, but, they slipped an interesting tidbit into the BBB and Democrats never noticed

I expect that they will start screaming, and some liberal judge will say that Congress cannot determine parameters around funding.

California Cannot Require Background Checks for Ammo

This was one of the stupidest laws ever, and just meant to make ammo more expensive. Calif. Appeals Court: Cannot Require Background Checks to Buy Ammo | Newsmax

In a 2-1 vote, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena, California, upheld a lower court judge's permanent injunction against enforcing the law.

Circuit Judge Sandra Ikuta said California failed to show that the law was consistent with the country's historical tradition of firearm regulation, as required under a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

Why does anyone want to live in a state with the highest taxes, and the lowest liberty? It isn't that beautiful, and yes, I did live in California for about 5 years after college.

Schools and Active Shooters

Can we have a rational discussion? Probably not. Should Teachers Carry Guns in Schools? | USCCA

What happens if there is an active school shooter. People, for whatever reason, don't want to protect schools. That would mean we would harden them, and provide security. Why? Because that isn't what it was like in their idyllic childhood. So what do you do, if a bad guy, or a crazy person, shows up with a gun?

It takes law enforcement anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes to respond to an emergency. The FBI reported that 69 percent of active threat events end in five minutes or less, and 67 percent are over before officers arrive. For rural schools, response times can stretch up to 20 minutes or longer — minutes that schools can’t afford to lose.

The last couple of events that come to mind were at churches, and the person was stopped by someone, not a cop, and a school shooting that was stopped by a cop.

So what should happen in that 10 or 20 minutes? Assuming of course that you don't live in a place like Uvalde, Texas, where the cops will show up and do nothing.

People in an active shooter incident have 3 choices. They can run, they can hide, or they can fight.

According to the research, [from The Purdue Homeland Security Institute,] when all the victims hide, the survival rate was 1.8 percent. When all the victims fought back, the survival probability was 98 percent. Their findings showed that the introduction of an SRO, armed staff member or both into a school shooting event resulted in significantly higher survival rates.

Click thru and read the article. Pros. Cons. The feelings of teachers. There is a lot about "feelings" when there isn't data. This is followed up with a spinkling of "might" and "could." But the article does look at both sides of the question.

State laws vary significantly. Some states, like Ohio, have robust programs like FASTER, while others allow individual districts to make decisions. Kansas permits arming teachers but faces insurance challenges. Policies frequently change, so it is crucial for teachers and parents to check with their state’s most recent legislation.

As I said, read the whole thing.

And here is my favorite photo of what I consider the most useless SWAT team in America. They sure look spiffy in their uniforms with their tactical gear and their diversity.

Gen Z Versus Hollywood

From Movieweb we get some truth on Gen Z. Jenna Ortega & Tim Burton Reveal Why Hollywood is Failing to Win Over Gen Z Audiences

Hollywood can't seem to get their minds around the fact that the endless reboots/sequels is not connecting with the current generation.

The emphasis on integrating Gen Z slang and behavior in films is so forced that it turns people off. I think studios are trying way too hard. Just give the new guy a chance, give the original script a chance, allow people to be creative and maybe step back a little bit. With Gen Z, it’s hard to grab their attention. You can’t show them stuff that they’ve already seen.

In other words, the endless remakes, sequels, prequels, whatever, are not going to work for Gen Z. But then I am a long way removed from Gen Z, and I'm done with the remakes/reboots/whatever. Try something new.

Tim Burton agreed.

Hat tip goes to Derek Anderson - The D.A. and his video JENNA ORTEGA DROPS TRUTH BOMB! Why Gen-Z Has Abandoned HOLLYWOOD And Why Anime Takeover Continues! The video is about 14 minutes, though it covers a lot more than the Movieweb article.

He has some recommendations on anime, which seems to be the one thing that is of interest to Gen Z.

Armed Citizen Stops Knife Attack

The incident described in this story happened in June, but I did not see it and write about it at the time. Armed Citizen Stops Knife Attack in Orlando Mall Parking Lot

You could also call this "Don't bring a knife to a gunfight."

Anti-gun advocates just can’t bring themselves to admit that armed citizens use their firearms to save themselves from attackers millions of times a year. That fact runs directly against their philosophy and beliefs.

Another thing they’ll never admit is that armed citizens frequently save other people from attackers, using their firearms to protect their unarmed neighbors from bad guys intent on harming them.

A woman and a man had been in a relationship. They met, apparently, to determine if things could be put back together. She had the good sense to meet him at a mall, a public place, at least. The discussion ended with her stabbed and slashed.

According to the police report, a witness told investigators that he and some family members were standing in the parking lot “when they saw a female ‘all stabbed up’ exit a red Tesla and heard her screaming.” The witness said that he then drew his concealed pistol, racked a round into the chamber, and pointed it at John.

According to another witness, after the armed citizen drew his gun and reportedly told John to back off, John replied, “The problem is with her, not you.” The attacker then got back into his vehicle and left the scene.

He fled the scene, when the concealed carry license holder did not back down. Cops arrested him in a nearby town. (Hat tip to Keep and Bear Arms.)

Mountain Lion on Camera in Backyard

The video is interesting but short. VIDEO: Mountain lion caught entering Brentwood homeowner's backyard - ABC7 San Francisco

So what would you do if you stumbled across a mountain lion in your back yard? Remember, the good people of California (and the Bay Area) think guns are uncivilized for the most part.

This is one big cat. Click thru for the video. It was caught briefly on security video. It is a fairly typical residential/suburban area, so it is a bit surprising.

I'm not sure there is a message with this story, except to point out that since it is California, no one recommends "shoot it with your firearm." Maybe you can't in California, maybe they value the cat's life above human life.

Brentwood, California is in Contra Costa County. It is about a 45 mile drive east of Oakland, and about a 25 mile drive west of Stockton. The Wiki lists it as being the the East San Francisco Bay area. I'm not sure I would have said that when I live in that part of the world.

National Education Association Wants to Erase Jews from Holocaust

There is no antisemitism here. What are you talking about? Largest Teachers' Union in United States Erases Jews From the Holocaust

The NEA described the Holocaust as having '12 million victims' from 'different faiths' without mentioning the attempted extermination of the Jewish people

Education or Indoctrination? (Hat tip to Irons in the Fire.)

AI Insanity and Other Tech News

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony has too much Tech News today for just an entry in Tuesday's Links. Daily News Stuff 26 July 2025: Spill Edition

How are things in the world of AI?

Meanwhile over at Amazon, "security first" means about as much as "talent first" did with VShojo. (Tom's Hardware)

Hackers were able to inject a persistent vulnerability into an Amazon AI coding tool by, uh, asking it to do it for them.

Also, anyone who buys an exercise bike or a treadmill that has an app, deserves to get exactly what they got.

Echelon home gym equipment can no longer be used without a monthly subscription, an internet connection, and probably government-issued photo ID stored on a public server. (Ars Technica)

So you bought a piece of exercise equipment that didn't require a monthly payment, but now it does require a monthly subscription. Congress or the FTC really needs to fix that bait and switch.

Click the link at the top for info on the Tea app kerfuffle. (Every user of Tea has had their government ID published to the net), and Britain's decent into technological dystopia, where you have no free speech, and are tracked by the best tech they can muster.

1984.0.0.1.

Saturday Roundup of Link Roundups - 26 July

Wombat-socho is first with In The Mailbox: 07.23.25 (Afternoon Edition)

The Bugscuffle Gazette: Think-pudding still offline
Toni Airaksinen: Study says boys more likely to be victims of dating violence than girls

The Right Way - Top of the News

The Arrogance of Leftists - The Daley Gator
Iran and China Are Circumventing Sanctions via Notorious Bank and Letitia James Is Implicated - IOTW Report

Animal Magnetism - Animal’s Hump Day News

I sure hope you’re right.
Yeah, a lot of us already knew that.

EBL - MAGA : Tulsi Time ☀️😠

Legal Insurrection: Tulsi demolishes Obama, Hillary on "Heavy Tranquilizers" and Russia Collusion
Instapundit: Come on Barbi, you can do it...

Wombat-socho again - In The Mailbox: 07.23.25 (Evening Edition)

Shot In The Dark: The Invisible Hangover, More Vibrancy! Where’s The Beef?, Berg’s 21st Law Is Universal, and Ask Not Why Stephen Colbert Is Gone
This Ain’t Hell: Rancid Cherry Theory Proven Once Again

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 24 July 2025: Test Your Backups Edition

Over 400 organisations including the Department of Energy have been breached while waiting for a Microsoft Sharepoint patch. (The Register)
Oops.

Small Dead Animals - Thursday On Turtle Island

Lord Carney’s Canada: The acceptance of WHO regulations. Woke bosses at the CBC. Tamara Lich.
Stories You Won’t Find At Carney’s CBC: A pox on pronouns. Everyone is tired of them.

A View from the Beach - Flotsam and Jetsam - Obamagate Heats Up

Matt Margolis, Gabbard Refers Barack Obama for Criminal Investigation Over Russiagate Scandal. TownHall's Cutie Pavlich has the LATEST: Gabbard Confirms Obama Has Been Referred to DOJ for Criminal Investigation.

Again from Wombat-socho - In The Mailbox: 07.24.25

CDR Salamander: What Does The Expected New CNO Think?
Chicago Boyz: Uncontrollable Anger
Da Tech Guy: Five Thoughts Under the Fedora

Gates of Vienna - News Feed 7/24/2025

Calif. Appeals Court: Cannot Require Background Checks to Buy Ammo
A federal appeals court ruled on Thursday that California’s first-of-its-kind law requiring firearm owners to undergo background checks to buy ammunition is unconstitutional.

Lawrence Person's BattleSwarm Blog - LinkSwarm For July 25, 2025

“Justice Department Announces Task Force to Investigate Obama Officials’ Russiagate Role.”
“Iran Acknowledges That US Airstrikes ‘Destroyed’ Nuclear Facilities.”

The Glibertarians - Thursday Morning Links

“How do you do, fellow football fans.” I assume a staffer is gonna get fired.
Please, God, make this happen. It might be the greatest podcast ever.

Once again from Wombat-socho - In The Mailbox: 07.25.25

American Thinker: They’re Not Sanctuary Cities; They’re Slavery Cities
Animal Magnetism: Rule Five Terms You Shouldn’t Use Friday

Maggie's Farm - Wednesday morning links

Tulsi Is About To Drop More Evidence Against Barack Obama
Russiagate's Architects Suppressed Doubts to Peddle False Claims

J.J. Sefton at Ace of Spades HQ - The Morning Report — 7/23/25

Distrust in institutions is at all-time high. Americans are looking for alternatives.
The Death of 'Expertise' Is America’s Great Rebirth

Doug Ross - Larwyn’s Linx: Benedict Obama

• Obama’s Real Legacy Comes into Focus - J.B. Shurk
• When Obama Began Strangling the Republic “By the Book” - John Kass

Anonymous Conservative - News Briefs – 07/24/2025

Media is blowing up the fact Trump’s name reportedly is in the Epstein files, due to Trump having met him and dealt with him, White House says it is a non-story.

I leave you with Wednesday's gifs from Wirecutter, Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #2796 from 90 Miles from Tyranny, and Wednesday Memes … from MaddMedic.

Don't Bring a Baseball Bat to a Gunfight

The DA made this determination in a little more than 2 weeks, which is amazingly fast by the standards of most jurisdictions. Allentown road rage shooting determined to be self-defense, no charges to be filed - 6abc Philadelphia

The incident took place on July 6th. Allentown, PA is roughly a 60 mile drive north of Philadelphia.

The DA's office says surveillance footage showed 35-year-old Tamir Johnson forcing another driver to the curb.

That's when Johnson reportedly got out of his vehicle and was swinging a baseball bat at the other car.

What actually precipitated the incident we don't know. We only know how it ended.

Tamir Johnson was shot once in the torso by the driver of the car he forced to the side of the road, after he hit the driver's door with the bat. After the shooting, the driver drove two blocks and then called police.

The Lehigh County District Attorney's Office ruled the shooting was self-defense and no charges will be filed.

It isn't surprising that this was ruled self-defense, given that there is video evidence, but investigations of this nature, and determinations of self-defense can take longer in Texas or Florida. So hats off to Gavin P Holihan, the DA of Lehigh County.

Self-defense is a human right, and this is clearly a case of Good Guys 1, Bad Guys 0.

Two Fires in Four Months at this EV Battery Facility

So, if a bunch of lithium-ion batteries catch fire, are they still "green technology?" West Michigan auto parts facility catches fire for second time in 4 months

Fire crews with the Holland Department of Public Safety responded to the facility, at 926 Waverly Road, shortly after 1 p.m. on Wednesday, July 9.

The auto parts manufacturing facility also caught fire overnight on March 30.

There are details at the article, but I recommend the StacheD Training video below. Patrick Durham is Fire Department captain in Michigan.

This is the StacheD Training video Two Fires, Four Months: This EV Battery Facility Keeps Burning

RIP Chuck Mangione

In the news that Ozzy had passed away on the 22nd, Chuck Mangione's passing was lost in the noise. Chuck Mangione also passed away on the 22nd, but I don't believe his family announced that for a couple of days.

If you were listening to the radio in the late 1970s, early 1980s you would have heard his music. "Feels So Good" was his signature song. It came out in 1977 and was on the radio a lot. It hit #1 on Billboard's Easy Listening chart and was #4 on The Hot 100. That mattered in 1977. I never liked that song, or I heard it so much I got sick of it. Either way, that isn't what we have today.

This song is "Give It All You Got" by Chuck Mangione from his 1980 album Fun and Games. This wasn't nearly as successful as "Feels So Good," but I like it.

"Feels So Good" was in an episode of Friends, an episode of King of the Hill, and made an appearance early in the 2016 movie Doctor Strange, among other appearances.

Brett Kimberlin Returns

From The Other McCain we get the following. Return of the Pro Se Pipsqueak: Disney and Hulu Get Sued by Brett Kimberlin!

This current legal action is in relation to a documentary on Disney/Hulu about the so-called The Speedway Murders.

In 1978, four teenagers who worked at a Burger Chef fast-food restaurant in the Indianapolis suburb of Speedway, Indiana, were kidnapped and murdered. The local police badly bungled the investigation, and no one was ever convicted for what was at the time a very notorious local crime.

Brett Kimberlin had previous sued The Other McCain.

One of the things you must remember is that I’ve been a journalist since 1986, and spent decades with a copy of the AP Stylebook and Libel Manual on my desk. The secret to avoiding libel is simple: (a) stick to the facts and (b) always attribute accusations. It is not me, the reporter, who is accusing the suspect of a crime; rather, I am merely reporting what “police say” the suspect has done.

The creators of the documentary, The Speedway Murders may or may not have defamed Mr. Kimberlin. That is for others to sort out. I'm not even clear on the details of the suit. The courts will figure that out.

Just for the record, by the way, I am informed by people who have looked into the Burger Chef murders that Kimberlin almost certainly was not involved with that particular crime which was likely committed by someone personally connected to one of those teenage victims.

Click thru for more details on the current case, and the way the case went for The Other McCain. It is hard to believe that was all more than 10 years ago. Instapundit, Popehat, and Legal Insurrection all covered that suit. I think it may be how I was introduced to The Other McCain. I would have to go back and check the archives.

Friday Links - 25 July

The Other McCain starts the ball rolling with Hunter Biden’s Lack of Impulse Control

One of the aspects of addiction that most people don’t understand is how heavy long-term substance abuse has a cumulative effect in terms of brain damage. In particular, the damage impacts the frontal cortex, impairing the function of conscience and impulse control.

Wombat-socho - Rule Five SundayMonday: Belated Bikini

Too farking busy running a convention this weekend to post anything.

Massad Ayoob - A VERY POPULAR PISTOL

When a firearm becomes hugely popular, there are generally good reasons. I’ve carried a Glock 19 for much of this year. Here’s why, from GUNS magazine where I’ve been writing the Handguns column for many years now.

The Federalist - Judge Tosses Russia Hoaxer Marc Elias’ Suit Against Wyoming’s Proof Of Citizenship Law

Russia collusion hoaxer Marc Elias was dealt a major defeat on Tuesday when a federal judge tossed his group’s lawsuit challenging Wyoming’s proof of citizenship voting law.

Miguel Gonzalez - Double down on dumb? Bold strategy.

So Colbert will become even more obnoxious to the point of having the few sponsors simply quit what’s left of the show so their brands do not suffer.

Miguel Gonzalez - And now is a stake through the heart

SIG decided to die in the P320 hill only to discover it was a quicksand bog.

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony - Daily News Stuff 23 July 2025: Still Sitting Edition

Replit, the company whose AI "Agent" deleted a user's production database, has promised that its AI "Agent" will no longer delete users' production databases in the future. (The Register)

Basically the system currently uses the same database for test and production, with no built-in rollback support.

When using an entirely experimental technology, this is kind of a bad idea.

Ask Dr. Drew - Bombshell: Dozens of Organ Donors “Still Alive” When Harvested, RFK Reveals In HHS Investigation

The conspiracy theorists were right again. In a shocking report released by RFK, the HHS found at least 28 patients who were likely still alive when organ harvesting began.

Meep at STUMP - RIP, Malcolm-Jamal Warner: Drowning as the Summer Menace

The main month for drowning deaths in the U.S.?

July.

Another Failure of the Victim-Selection Process

In Philadelphia of all places. Man shot multiple times by homeowner after allegedly trying to break into home in Philadelphia's Kensington section, police say - 6abc Philadelphia

A man was shot multiple times by a homeowner after he was allegedly trying to break into a home in Philadelphia's Kensington section.

The guy who got shot was taken to the hospital, and he is expected to survive. The cops didn't wait for him to be released, and they arrested him and are holding him in custody while he is in hospital.

Kiladelphia is a Blue City, so it isn't clear, to me anyway, how the DA views self-defense in that city.

So far, no charges have been filed against homeowner.

Which tells me that the cops are mostly on the side of self-defense.

Kensington is an area of Philadelphia that is low income, at least according to the WiKi. Does the DA think that poor people have the right to defend themselves? I would like to say, "We'll see," but I doubt that the media will write another word about this incident.

Self-defense is a human-right.

A Helicopter Crash and the Sig P320 Kerfuffle

Matt Silvey at 2A Cops has some thoughts about the P320. Star 6 Crash, 20 Years Later

The helicopter, a Eurocopter EC120, suffered a catastrophic engine failure due to a faulty fuel pressure regulator.

The fuel pressure regulator issue was something Eurocopter knew about, but chose to take the Ford Pinto route. They figured it would be cheaper to repair the helicopters that broke rather than recall all the faulty regulators. They figured pilots would have enough altitude to safely autorotate down if and when they failed.

When this particular fuel regulator failed, that didn't happen. Two people died. One person had life-altering injuries. All because profits are more important than people.

This incident, the Star 6 crash, is why I absolutely HATE companies who produce unsafe products, and rather than recall them, figure it will be cheaper to settle lawsuits.

You should click thru and read the whole thing. And while you are there you should subscribe to 2A Cops.

A Mid Fantastic Four Movie Won't Get It Done

The "early reviews" of Fantastic Four: First Steps were all along the lines of, "This film is Amazing!" Those were all from what Nerdrotic, Critical Drinker, and more call the Access Media. They can't say something is bad, or they will lose access to early showings. Now, more rational reviews are coming out. Some people like it. Some people don't. No body seems to hate it. The general reaction seems to be something along the lines of, "Meh."

Alan Ng of Film Threat is a film critic that I trust. One of the few. Here is his review at Film Threat. The Fantastic Four: First Steps

The first 20 minutes of the movie are a family dinner. Try to remember that this is supposed to be an action-oriented, superhero movie.

The story goes on from there.

Marvel has also returned to form by making its story on Earth deadly serious. Yes, there are light moments, but the characters are not constantly throwing out one-liners. This seriousness was the tone of the early MCU movies, up to Endgame. By being serious, all the Galactus stuff is allowed to be taken seriously as well.

They seem to have realized that Waititi laughing at everything lost them a couple of boatloads of money.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is good, when it should have been great.

20 minutes of cooking and family. Pedro Pascal as a confused Reed Richards. And a few other issues makes me not want to see this movie. At all, let alone in a theater.

Now Chris Gore, also liked the film overall, and I usually like these two guys and their take on movies. I am not convinced.

Next up will be Avengers: Age of Apathy, or something along those lines. The apathy has already set in for me. 15 years ago, I would have been excited to see this movie in a theater, if only at a matinee on a smaller screen. I saw bad Marvel movies, like Nick Cage in Ghost Rider, even though I knew they were going to be bad. (Ghost Rider is bad, and yet somehow got a sequel, which managed to be worse.) Then I would get the DVD from Hollywood Video or Blockbuster to watch "The making of" features.

Today, I'm not sure I will hunt it down when I can see it on streaming. First, Disney Marvel has made me not care about any of these movies, with the quality of the movies and TV shows they have produced. Even before Endgame some of them were bad. Second, I don't generally give money to people who hate me, and Hollywood has proven they hate everyone in "flyover country."

If you see the movie over the weekend, I would be interested in your thoughts. I do - very rarely - see movies in the theater these days, as there is a theater that does the Cheap, Tuesday Matinee deal, even if it means not seeing the movie in the best format. (IMAX is a long drive, and rarely worth it these days.)

One more note. Nerdrotic gave us only a quick thought from X after seeing the movie in LA.

Fantastic Four: First Steps is the best Disney Marvel movie of the year.
#FantasticFour

If you're not counting, that means that Fantastic Four is better than Thunderbolts^*, which nobody saw, and Captain America 4, the Captain America film without Captain America. Both of those films lost money, though we don't know how much. Thunderbolts^* made just under $400 million at the global box office, and Captain America 4 made just over that amount. Both have a listed production budget of $180 million, which few people believe. And then there is marketing.

The movie officially opens today, which really means yesterday with previews. There was also a fan screening on Tuesday, and I believe a critics' screening on either Tuesday or Monday.

Disney-Marvel's Fantastic Four and the Business of Movies

In May of 2002, Columbia Pictures and Marvel Enterprises released Sam Raimi's Spider-Man. It made a lot of money and kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They had a good run, and made a whole lot of money.

Since Disney took over, they seem to have forgotten how to tell stories. They continued for a while, and then fired the people who oversaw the rise of The MCU. Disney Marvel has released 2 Marvel movies this year, and both lost money. They have number three queued up, and things are not looking good for that movie.

Let's start out with an article from Forbes. ‘Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Box Office Projections Far Below ‘Superman’ Opening

Since I've mostly lost interest in what Disney Marvel has produced in the way of movies, I am more interested in the business part of the movie business. It is supposed to be a business after all. (It isn't "Show Friends.")

While The Fantastic Four: First Steps exact budget number hasn’t been released, Variety reported that the film cost above $200 million to make before P&A.

Disney is famous for understating the cost of their movies, and the entertainment trades usually just take them at their word, but Forbes is diligent about the business. If a movie is produced in the UK, or in any one of several US states, if they want their Movie Production Tax Credit, they have to file very detailed reports about the actual budgets. In the case of The Fantastic Four: First Steps we won't see any of those reports (if they exist) before the end of this year, or the start of next year.

So let's just assume that the $200 million number is correct for the cost of production. Then there comes the Prints and Advertising budget. This includes the obvious stuff, like trailers, ads, expenses for getting the actors to network interviews. The P&A budget also includes the cost of having the movie translated into other languages for international exhibition. It isn't uncommon for movie studios to spend half of the production budget on P&A. Disney Marvel often spends much more than that. Since I have erased ads (mostly from my life) I don't know how much this has been pushed, but I think it is fair to assume $150 million in advertising, etc.

So Disney Marvel is all in on this movie to the tune of $350 million.

Now movie studios don't receive 100% of the box office. Strange as it may seem theaters actually want to make money. That is called rentals, and while the actual amount that studios get is a bit complicated, the general rule is that studios get about half of the global box office take. A bit more than half in North America, a bit less in Europe, South America, and most of Asia, and much less than half in China.

So this movie needs to make $700 million at a minimum at the global box office just to break even for Disney Marvel. Probably more than that. So they might break even, but I doubt it.

Now Disney will also pay themselves $100 million for showing The Fantastic Four: First Steps on Disney+ and/or Hulu. That is smoke and mirrors. If you take $20 out of your wallet, and put it in you pocket, you don't have $20 more than you had before you started. Disney would count that as 20 bucks paid to the movie by "someone."

So the hat tip for this goes to Az at HeelVsBabyface and his video Fantastic Four Box Office Projections Spell [Dr] DOOM for the Movie!!