Universal’s “Dear Evan Hansen” failed to lure in even the most ardent fans of the Broadway musical, hauling in an estimated $7.5 million during its domestic opening weekend.

Marred by negative reviews, The film failed to meet expectations. Boxoffice.com had predicted that the adaption would bring in $10 million over three days.

Shawn Robbins chief analyst of Boxoffice.com said that the film was an “unfortunate misfire” because it didn’t appeal to audiences beyond the dedicated stage fans. The commercial appeal of motion pictures is not always clear. “Musicals can be a bit disappointing on the commercial front, so this film’s performance may help us to understand what kind of escapism people are seeking in their immediate future when they return to cinemas.”

The film “Dear Evan Hansen”, which has a declining return, will not be able to recover its $28million production budget.

This will be a modest loss compared to Universal’s last musical film “Cats,” which opened to just $6.5 million in late 2019 and ultimately lost the studio a large chunk of its $100 million budget.

Warner Bros.’ In The Heights was also struggling to draw audiences in June. The film earned $11.5million its debut weekend, but only just over $45million for the entire run. This despite rave reviews.

It is likely that the poor box office results were due to the fact that the Broadway adaptation of Lin Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning Broadway musical was released simultaneously on HBO Max and HBO.

Disclosure: Comcast, the parent company for NBCUniversal/CNBC is Comcast. NBCUniversal distributed “Dear Evan Hansen.”