Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's climate change documentary experiences cold reception at theaters nationwide

AP Photo/Seth Wenig

This past weekend, New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's climate change documentary, "To the End," debuted in movie theaters to an abysmal $80 per theater.

The film, which follows four young women, including Cortez, as they attempt to pass sweeping climate change legislation in Congress, currently boasts an 88% "fresh" critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, Fox News reported.

This weekend's box office results were a disappointment for the documentary, which had been eagerly awaited by fans of the congresswoman. Despite its wide release, the film only managed to make a paltry $10,000, coming in at a dismal 33rd place overall. The meager earnings were a far cry from the success the documentary had been expected to achieve.

Despite the positive reviews, the documentary failed to draw in a substantial audience, coming in 33rd place overall at the box office. The film's poor performance is indicative of a larger trend in the film industry, with Oscar-bait films lauded during film festivals struggling to excel in theaters this year.

Critics attribute the audience drop-off to the rise in streaming platforms, audiences’ increasing distrust in critic scores, and topics that do not interest a large swathe of the public.

In the case of "To the End," the latter factor may have been the largest contributor to the film’s meager earnings, with climate change documentaries in the last several years failing to draw in a substantial audience.

Despite the film's lackluster performance at the box office, Representative Ocasio-Cortez's documentary has been praised by critics. Teo Bugbee of the New York Times wrote that the film offers "the best onscreen antidote to despair," while RogertEbert.com’s Nick Allen wrote that it is "set to ignite more Americans to take action."