What is the budget of Paul Blart Mall Cop 2?

"Paul Blart Mall Cop 2," an action released in 2015, was directed by Andy Fickman and stars Kevin James, Raini Rodriguez. The production budget was $38,000,000, placing it in the mid-budget range for action productions of its era.

Key Budget Allocation Categories

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

Stunts, Action Sequences & Visual Effects: Action films allocate a substantial portion of their budget to choreographing and executing practical stunts, pyrotechnics, and CGI-heavy sequences.
Above-the-Line Talent (Cast & Director): A-list talent commands significant upfront fees plus backend participation.
Production Design, Sets & Locations: Action films frequently require multiple international shooting locations, large-scale set construction, vehicle acquisitions and modifications, and specialized equipment , all of which drive production costs well above those of dialogue-driven genres.
Development: In January 2009, Sony expressed an interest in making a sequel to Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

What were the major cost factors in Paul Blart Mall Cop 2?

Several factors contributed to the overall production costs of "Paul Blart Mall Cop 2."

Stunts: Stunts, Action Sequences & Visual Effects is one of the primary cost drivers in action productions of this scale.
Above-the-Line Talent (Cast: Above-the-Line Talent (Cast & Director) is one of the primary cost drivers in action productions of this scale.
Production Design: Production Design, Sets & Locations is one of the primary cost drivers in action productions of this scale.

How Does Paul Blart Mall Cop 2's Budget Compare to Similar Films?

At $38,000,000, Paul Blart Mall Cop 2 sits in the mid-budget range. Here is how it compares to productions with a similar budget:

Weapons (2025): Budget $38,000,000, Worldwide Gross $269,972,492
The Fast and the Furious (2001): Budget $38,000,000, Worldwide Gross $207,283,925
News of the World (2020): Budget $38,000,000, Worldwide Gross $12,700,000
Only the Brave (2017): Budget $38,000,000, Worldwide Gross $25,754,775
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017): Budget $38,000,000 , Gross $125,427,681

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

Paul Blart Mall Cop 2 Box Office Performance

"Paul Blart Mall Cop 2" earned $107,597,242 worldwide at the box office. Against a production budget of $38,000,000, the film performed strongly at the box office.

A film typically needs to earn approximately twice its production budget to cover marketing and distribution costs. For "Paul Blart Mall Cop 2," that break-even threshold was roughly $76,000,000. With worldwide earnings of $107,597,242, the film cleared that threshold comfortably.

Production Budget: $38,000,000
Worldwide Gross: $107,597,242
Net Return: $69,597,242
ROI: approximately 183.2%

At 183.2%, "Paul Blart Mall Cop 2" earned roughly $2.83 for every $1 invested in production.

Paul Blart Mall Cop 2 Production History

In January 2009, Sony expressed an interest in making a sequel to Paul Blart: Mall Cop. It was revealed on January 7, 2014, that Andy Fickman was in talks to direct the film while Kevin James, who also co-wrote the script with Nick Bakay, would be back to star as Blart. James produced the film along with Todd Garner and Happy Madison's Adam Sandler.

In an October 2012 interview, James said that he liked the idea of filming the sequel at the Mall of America. Principal photography commenced on April 21, 2014, at Wynn Las Vegas, and ended on June 26, 2014. It is the first time that Steve Wynn has allowed a commercial film to be shot at this property.

Critical Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 has a rating of 6% based on 62 reviews and an average rating of 3.00/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Bathed in flop sweat and bereft of purpose, Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 strings together fat-shaming humor and Segway sight gags with uniformly unfunny results." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 13 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "overwhelming dislike". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale.