‘Lisa Frankenstein’ fails to revive North American box office on a very slow Super Bowl weekend

“ Lisa Frankenstein ” didn’t come to life at the North American box office in its first weekend in theaters. The horror comedy written by Diablo Cody and starring Kathryn Newton and Cole Sprouse earned $3.8 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. It debuted in second place on a very slow Super Bowl weekend, behind the spy thriller “Argylle.”

Matthew Vaugn’s “ Argylle ” got first place with only $6.5 million, which brings its running domestic total to $28.8 million in two weekends. The $200 million production is Apple's first major theatrical flop. Universal Pictures oversaw the North American release for the streamer, where it is playing in 3,605 locations. Globally, it's earned $60.1 million to date.

Focus Features released “Lisa Frankenstein” in 3,144 locations. A 1980s-set teenage riff on Mary Shelly’s classic tale, “Lisa Frankenstein” was the directorial debut of Robin Williams’ daughter Zelda Williams. Reviews overall were mixed to negative with a 49% on Rotten Tomatoes. AP’s Mark Kennedy wrote in his review that it was “a real monster — stitched together from previous movies, painfully incoherent and deeply, deeply dumb.”

Audiences were mostly female (61%) and under the age of 35 (71%), according to exit data. But while the opening weekend was low, the production budget was also relatively modest at a reported $13 million.