Image via 20th Century Studios, courtesy Everett Collection
Director Ridley Scottmade a long-awaited return to the sci-fi genre this week with The Dog Stars, but the movie wasn’t received with the sort of welcome that Scott would have anticipated. The filmmaker has had a difficult run at the box office lately, with several costly movies underperforming. His latest release, Gladiator II, grossed more than $460 million worldwide, but this hefty number was offset by production costs reported to be as high as $300 million. Before that, Scott helmed Napoleon and The Last Duel, both of which fell short of box-office expectations as well. In fact, his last sci-fi movie before The Dog Stars, 2017’s Alien: Covenant, brought its long-running franchise to a halt with its $240 million worldwide haul. Scott has announced his interest in returning to the series again.
The filmmaker is about to turn 90, but he’s in a particularly prolific phase of his career. He’s already working on a new Treasure Island adaptation, but The Dog Stars‘ critical and commercial performance is undoubtedly a setback. The movie holds a 41% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the consensus reads, “A derivative and drowsy tour through the post-apocalypse, The Dog Stars‘ lush visuals can’t compensate for its listless narrative and underpowered pacing.” The film’s 41% score puts it among the bottom tier of Scott’s movies on Rotten Tomatoes; his top-reviewed films are his sci-fi classics Blade Runner and Alien.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
04
How do you deal with authority you don’t trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.
08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You’d Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Resistance, Zion
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t help but notice the seams in things.
You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.
The Wasteland
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That’s you.
You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Los Angeles, 2049
Blade Runner
You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.
Arrakis
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.
You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
Here’s How Much ‘The Dog Stars’ Grossed this Weekend at the Box Office
Starring Jacob Elordi, Josh Brolin, and Margaret Qualley, The Dog Stars grossed just $8 million in its domestic debut, which is in the same range as the recently released Jason Statham-led action film Mutiny. It’s also Scott’s lowest debut since The Counselor, which ended its run with around $16 million domestically. With a reported $70 million production budget and typical revenue splits, The Dog Stars would need about $150 million worldwide to break even. Studios spend millions to market movies of this size, which means that simply recouping the production budget is often not enough. The Dog Stars‘ debut barely scored it a spot on the domestic top-five list, with even Coyote vs. Acme outperforming it this weekend, and the holdover hits Spider-Man: Brand New Dayand The Odyssey retaining the number-one and two spots, respectively. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
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