Did Disney Drop The Ball With 'Alice Through The Looking Glass'?

Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS)'s latest Blockbuster hopeful, "Alice Through the Looking Glass" had a "disastrous" U.S. debut, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The film, starring Johnny Depp as Hatter Tarrant Hightopp, collected a mere $27 million in the domestic box office.

Why did this happen?

Speaking as a guest on CNBC, Erik Davis of Fandango suggested that the film's poor performance was more due to bad reviews than it was to Johnny Depp's massive PR scandal.

Davis also noted that when the first "Alice In Wonderland" film came out in 2009, it was able to piggyback off of James Cameron's "Avatar."

Other reasons for the film's poor debut include film enthusiasts not being as excited for a new "Alice In Wonderland" film this time around and the hot weather which dissuades people from spending time inside a theater when they can be enjoying the sun.

Nevertheless, the film pro stated that no one should feel "sorry" for Disney as the company has already collected more than $4 billion in film revenue for the year, which isn't even half over yet. Disney is likely to use this film as an example and re-evaluate demand for live action sequels.

Shares of Disney were trading lower by more than 1 percent mid-Tuesday afternoon.