When Jumanji first came out in 1995, Robin Williams starred in a creative action-adventure story where a board game magically came to life. Many people who grew up with the movie fondly remember the jungle creatures escaping into the real world. This presented a big challenge for Dwayne Johnson and the new cast when they tried to bring the story back 22 years later, but the franchise ultimately exceeded everyone’s hopes.
Released in 2017, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was a major success, earning $962 million globally on a $90 million budget. This new version updated the original idea – instead of jungle creatures escaping from a board game, the characters are pulled into a video game. The film’s blend of a talented cast, exciting action, and plenty of humor proved to be a winning formula.
Following the success of the first film, a sequel, Jumanji: The Next Level, was quickly produced in 2019 with a budget of $125 million. The movie was another big hit, grossing $801 million globally, and development on a fourth film began soon after. However, several issues caused significant delays. Jumanji 4 is now confirmed to be in production, with a planned release in December 2026. The long gap between films presents a new challenge, as Dwayne Johnson’s ability to guarantee success with his star power isn’t as certain as it once was.
Dwayne Johnson Has Been Misfiring at the Box Office
Dwayne Johnson became a huge movie star with popular films like the Fast & Furious series, Moana, and Central Intelligence. He continued to draw large audiences with the Jumanji movies, proving his appealing personality and charisma worked well on screen. However, some reports from the sets of films like Black Adam and Red One suggest this success may have led to some ego issues.
After Jumanji: The Next Level, Dwayne Johnson starred alongside Emily Blunt in the 2021 adventure film Jungle Cruise, which was inspired by the popular Disney theme park ride. While the film received good reviews and a strong audience score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, it didn’t make as much money as Disney expected. With a $200 million budget, it only earned $220 million worldwide, putting a sequel on hold. Johnson also had a huge success with Red Notice on Netflix in 2021; it became the service’s most-watched movie ever, although it was later surpassed by KPop Demon Hunters. However, Red Notice received mostly negative reviews from critics, with a 37% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Because it was a streaming film, box office numbers weren’t as important.
Things took a turn for the worse in 2022 with the release of Black Adam, which many believe signaled the end of the DC Extended Universe. The film, a darker take on a superhero story, received poor reviews (a 39% score on Rotten Tomatoes) and didn’t attract large audiences in theaters. While it earned $393 million worldwide, with a production budget between $190 and $260 million, it didn’t live up to expectations, and there were reports of Dwayne Johnson heavily influencing the project behind the scenes.
More stories about Dwayne Johnson’s on-set behavior surfaced with the release of the 2024 action movie Red One, which cost around $200–250 million to make. Despite the large budget, the film received negative reviews and earned only $186 million worldwide. Johnson recently tried for awards recognition with a strong performance in the 2026 sports biopic The Smashing Machine. Although he received a Golden Globe nomination and the film was well-received by critics, it didn’t attract a large audience and has largely been forgotten.
‘Jumanji 4’s Box Office Success Isn’t Guaranteed
Sony Pictures Releasing
Dwayne Johnson’s recent movies haven’t performed well at the box office, so he’s focusing on established franchises like Fast & Furious – even after a public disagreement with Vin Diesel. He’s also involved in a Moana sequel (both animated and live-action) and has been making appearances with WWE to revitalize his popularity. However, the upcoming sequel isn’t just facing challenges because of Johnson’s recent box office results. Kevin Hart, a frequent co-star, hasn’t been as successful lately either. Films like Borderlands and DC League of Super-Pets (where he starred with Johnson) didn’t capture audiences, and his streaming movies – Me Time, Lift, and The Man from Toronto – haven’t resonated with viewers either.
As a fan, I’m really excited about the next Jumanji movie, but I do worry about the long wait between films. It’s happened with other franchises, and sometimes people lose interest when it’s been a while. Plus, Dwayne Johnson has said this will be the last movie with our current group of characters, which means they’ve got a lot of storylines to tie up! That’s a big challenge. Still, I think the break actually helps the series. It builds anticipation and makes the next installment feel even bigger and more exciting.
‘Jumanji 4’s Best Weapon for Success Is Jack Black
Jack Black was already a well-known actor when he started working on the Jumanji movies, building on a diverse career that included popular films like School of Rock and Kung Fu Panda. However, his popularity has grown even more since the release of Jumanji: The Next Level, with several major successes following.
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Jack Black has become a major box office draw, starting with his incredibly popular performance as Bowser in The Super Mario Brothers Movie. His song, “Peaches,” even earned him a Golden Globe nomination! He’s set to continue this success with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which is coming out before Jumanji 4 and could give him two blockbuster films this year. He also starred in A Minecraft Movie, which was a huge hit, earning close to $1 billion, and is getting a sequel. Most recently, Black took on a reboot of Anaconda with Paul Rudd. Though it could have been just another action comedy, Black helped turn it into a surprisingly successful film, even despite negative reviews.
Although it’s been a while since the last Jumanji movie, and that could make it harder for the next one to do well in theaters, the franchise still has a good chance of succeeding. Dwayne Johnson is a big reason people enjoy Jumanji, but Jack Black (and Karen Gillan, too) also have dedicated fans and have proven they can draw audiences recently. Plus, the Jumanji name itself and the timing of a holiday release give the movie a boost. However, it’s still uncertain whether Jumanji 4 will be as popular as previous films.
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2026-02-03 02:06