One of the most notable films on the 2024 movie schedule has to be the upcoming sequel, Twisters, which features Glen Powell and co. playing tornado chasers in Oklahoma. Based on the intense footage that's been released thus far, the stakes are high, and there's plenty of spectacle at play. The film is still weeks away from release but, at this time, early box office tracking points to it having a behemoth of an opening weekend. And, as exciting as that prospect is, I'm even more pumped for the film after hearing Glen Powell hype up the film’s incredible stunts!
Glen Powell has already seen Twisters himself and described it as “badass” and “really cool.” What the Hidden Figures alum seems particularly excited for moviegoers to see, though, are the stunts that are performed in the flick. While speaking with his castmates for Fandango’s Big Ticket interview, the A-lister recalled shooting the film's massive storm sequence, which he referred to as “one of the most incredible action sequences of all time”:
We shot that in December with a rain machine. [It was] one of the coldest nights I’ve ever experienced, getting dragged across a pool by a wire. I think... this was the most physical thing that I’ve ever done.
The Texas native really put himself through a lot of physical work for Twisters, as his past comments have suggested. For instance, when it came to portraying the town around him being blown apart by cyclones, the leading man had “a giant jet engine” blown in his face. He also had debris thrown at him and was dragged around. Needless to say, the disaster flick isn’t holding back from showing the intensity of what it’s like to try to survive against many cyclones. And, quite frankly, I'm ready to see all of this play out on the big screen!
And, if you really want to get a sense of just how extreme Twisters will be, Glen Powell continued to talk about the stunt work, which should get audiences hyped:
You’re talking about humans getting sucked up into a tornado. But you’re recreating what it’s like to be getting hit by debris and all that stuff. So you’re watching real stuntmen getting sucked up into the sky, and you’re watching trucks move across [the field], and you’re jumping into a pool and you’re getting dragged. It's a fully physical experience, because the investment as an actor that you have to have is like, it can’t be delicate. It can’t be tender. Tornadoes aren’t tender, and you have to put your body on the line in order to sell that experience.
All of Glen Powell’s high praise towards the stunt work, which one can get a sense of via the Twisters trailer, is making me too pumped to see it. The fact that he says we won’t be seeing anything “delicate” or “tender” tells me that we're truly be in for a wild ride. And, if the box office numbers prove to be accurate, plenty of people will be getting in on that ride amid opening weekend.
According to BoxOffice Pro, Twisters is expected to bring in a domestic opening weekend haul in the range of $65 million to $95 million. The numbers are understandable for a few one reasons, with one being that this is the follow-up to the beloved Twister, the 1996 flick starring Helen Hunt and the late Bill Paxton. The movie has also been said to be similar to Top Gun: Maverick in a few respects. While the upcoming flick will ultimately have to clear a reported $200 million budget, the opening numbers are still respectable.
Just like many people saw Maverick to relive nostalgia, BoxOffice Pro believes the same will be true for Twisters in that fans of the original movie will want to flock to the cinemas for its sequel. (It's also worth mentioning that Twister ended up being the high-grossing film of 1996.) Also, 2024 movie release is predicted to have the same luck, out-grossing other recent disaster films like Geostorm, The Hurricane Heist and Moonfall.
It also helps to have prominent rising stars in the movie like Glen Powell, who brought in big box office money with the surprise success of Anyone But You. There's also more great talent within the cast, including Daisy Edgar-Jones of Where the Crawdads Sing as well as Hamilton and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' Anthony Ramos. Combine that star power with premium offerings like IMAX, ScreenX and motion seating, and the Lee Isaac Chung-helmed film should be a sight to behold on the big screen!
Glen Powell and co. are certainly selling this film quite well and, if they continue to do so, Twisters may indeed hit those numbers that are being predicted. I, for one, plan to feast my eyes on this film, which opens in theaters on July 19th, and I hope you do, too!
