The Boss (2016 film)
The Boss is a 2016 American comedy film directed by Ben Falcone and written by Falcone, Melissa McCarthy and Steve Mallory. The film stars McCarthy, Kristen Bell, Ella Anderson, Tyler Labine, Kathy Bates, Annie Mumolo, Timothy Simons, and Peter Dinklage. "The Boss" had its premiere in Sydney on March 21, 2016, and was theatrically released in the United States on April 8 by Universal Pictures. Although it received generally negative reviews from critics, it grossed over $78 million worldwide on a budget of $29 million. Premise. The film follows a wealthy woman who, after  being arrested and losing her fortune, uses her assistant's daughter's Dandelion Girls cookie sales to return to the top. Production. Initially announced as "Michelle Darnell", the film is based on a character McCarthy created for the comedy troupe Groundlings. Universal was at first unable to decide on the gender of the film's antagonist. Before Peter Dinklage was finally cast, the studio also considered Oprah Winfrey, Jon Hamm and Sandra Bullock as possibilities. Kathy Bates plays Ida Marquette, Darnell's mentor, and Kristen Bell plays Claire, Darnell's former personal assistant. Filming. Set in Chicago, the movie began  filming in Chicago on March 12, 2015. In addition to filming in Chicago, the movie was also filmed throughout various locations in the Atlanta, Georgia area, including Agnes Scott College, Crescent Avenue in Midtown, Glenwood Park, and the Buckhead Loop area. Release. The first official full-length trailer was released on November 19, 2015. The film was released on April 8, 2016. Box office. "The Boss" grossed $63.3 million in the United States and Canada, plus $15.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $78.8 million against a budget of $29 million. In the  United States and Canada, pre-release tracking suggested the film would gross $20–24 million from 3,480 theaters in its opening weekend, besting fellow newcomers "Hardcore Henry" ($7–10 million projection) and "Demolition" ($2–3 million projection). The film grossed $985,000 from its early Thursday screenings and $8.1 million on its first day. It went on to gross $23.6 million in its opening weekend, finishing first at the box office. Reception. Critical response. "The Boss" received generally negative reviews from critics. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 22%, based on 197  reviews, with an average of 4.40/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Melissa McCarthy remains as fiercely talented as ever, but her efforts aren't enough to prop up the baggy mess of inconsistent gags and tissue-thin writing that brings down "The Boss"." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 40 out of 100, based on reviews from 39 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale. Manohla Dargis of The New York Times writes: "The movie is funny without being much  good; mostly, it’s another rung on Ms. McCarthy’s big ladder up." Justin Chang of "Variety magazine" calls the film a "sloppy, haphazard comic vehicle" although he does praise McCarthy for doing the most possible to extract laughs from the material.