What is the budget of Marriage Story?

"Marriage Story," a drama released in 2019, was directed by Noah Baumbach and stars Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson. The production budget was $18,000,000, placing it in the low-budget range for drama productions of its era.

Key Budget Allocation Categories

While specific budget breakdowns are not publicly available, typical cost drivers for a drama production like this include:

Above-the-Line Talent: Drama films live or die on the strength of their performances.
Location Filming & Period Production Design: Authentic locations , whether contemporary or historical , require scouting, permits, travel, lodging, and often significant dressing to match the story's time period.
Post-Production, Color Grading & Score: The editorial process for dramas is typically longer than genre films, with careful attention to pacing and tone.
Production: The premise for the film first came to Baumbach in 2016, while he was in post-production on The Meyerowitz Stories.

What were the major cost factors in Marriage Story?

Several factors contributed to the overall production costs of "Marriage Story."

Above-the-Line Talent: Above-the-Line Talent is one of the primary cost drivers in drama productions of this scale.
Location Filming: Location Filming & Period Production Design is one of the primary cost drivers in drama productions of this scale.
Post-Production: Post-Production, Color Grading & Score is one of the primary cost drivers in drama productions of this scale.

How Does Marriage Story's Budget Compare to Similar Films?

At $18,000,000, Marriage Story sits in the low-budget range. Here is how it compares to productions with a similar budget:

127 Hours (2010): Budget $18,000,000, Worldwide Gross $35,700,000
A Dog's Way Home (2019): Budget $18,000,000, Worldwide Gross $17,643,857
Amadeus (1984): Budget $18,000,000, Worldwide Gross $90,007,557
And So It Goes (2014): Budget $18,000,000, Worldwide Gross $25,312,387
Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004): Budget $18,000,000 , Gross $65,070,412

The median budget for wide-release drama films in the 2010s ranges from $30 to 80M for mid-budget to $150M+ for tentpoles.

Marriage Story Box Office Performance

"Marriage Story" earned $333,686 worldwide at the box office. Against a production budget of $18,000,000, the film faced challenges in theatrical release. Home video, streaming, and ancillary revenue may have contributed to its overall performance.

A film typically needs to earn approximately twice its production budget to cover marketing and distribution costs. For "Marriage Story," that break-even threshold was roughly $36,000,000. With worldwide earnings of $333,686, the film did not reach break-even in theatrical release.

Production Budget: $18,000,000
Worldwide Gross: $333,686
Net Return: −$17,666,314
ROI: approximately -98.1%

At -98.1%, "Marriage Story" did not recoup its production budget through theatrical release alone.

Marriage Story Production History

Randy Newman composed the film's score,his second for Baumbach, following The Meyerowitz Stories (2017). The score was recorded at 20th Century Fox Studios's Newman Scoring Stage (named in honor of Newman's uncles Alfred and Lionel) using a 40-piece chamber orchestra with limited instruments. The film's soundtrack album was released by Lakeshore Records.

Awards and Recognition

Won 1 Oscar. 129 wins & 269 nominations total

National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress: Laura Dern (92nd Academy Awards)

Critical Reception

Critic Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote of the film: "At once funny, scalding, and stirring, built around two bravura performances of incredible sharpness and humanity, it's the work of a major film artist, one who shows that he can capture life in all its emotional detail and complexity , and, in the process, make a piercing statement about how our society now works." Alonso Duralde of TheWrap praised the acting and Baumbach's screenplay, saying: "One wonders if Baumbach left references to Kramer vs.