Can ‘Elvis’ or ‘The Black Phone’ Break Through in This Blockbuster-Heavy Box Office Season?

No, Warner Bros.’ “Elvis” and Universal/Blumhouse’s “The Black Phone” won’t light up the box office charts the way “Top Gun: Maverick” and “Jurassic World: Dominion” have, but they will provide the sort of variety that movie theaters need to keep what has been a strong summer going.

As “Elvis” director Baz Luhrmann quipped while promoting his film at CinemaCon, “Man cannot live on Batman alone,” and neither can the box office. During the wildly strong summers of 2018 and 2019, the box office got relatively smaller but essential support from documentaries like “RBG,” horror films like “Hereditary” and “The First Purge,” and music films like “Rocketman.”