Spider-Man: Brand New Day £12,048,458 – £65,067,503
Dropped 66.9% in its second weekend (48.7% without previews)
£3.79m 31.6% (-51.7% £7.85m) Fri; £4.38m 36.5% (-47.6% £8.36m) Sat; £3.84m 32% (-46.8% £7.22m Sun) £2.15m Mon
7th biggest second weekend between Beauty and the Beast and The Odyssey (close to Avengers: Endgame, Spectre, Jurassic World and Top Gun: Maverick) and 17th biggest second weekend between Jurassic World and The Odyssey (close to Casino Royale, LOTR: The Return of the King, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2).
Biggest second weekend over the last 52 weeks ahead of The Odyssey, Toy Story 5, and Wicked Part 2).
Biggest second weekends
| Skyfall | £16,107,687 | -20.18% | £53,440,685 |
| No Time To Die | £15,235,947 | -41.21% | £52,694,547 |
| Avengers: Endgame | £14,331,192 | -67.04% | £69,025,147 |
| Barbie | £13,226,848 | -28.54% | £47,988,743 |
| Spectre | £13,145,138 | -68.17% | £63,973,267 |
| Beauty and the Beast (2017) | £12,334,338 | -37.39% | £39,884,575 |
| Spider-Man: Brand New Day | £12,048,458 | -67.9% | £65,067,503 |
| The Odyssey | £11,887,391 | -5.40% | £35,334,436 |
| Jurassic World | £11,133,912 | -42.46% | £38,522,331 |
| The Lion King (2019) | £10,660,287 | -36.06% | £36,889,089 |
| Top Gun: Maverick | £10,325,500 | -35.19% | £38,471,380 |
According to Countit research which would be rejected by exhibitors and industry bodies Brand New Day sold over 1m tickets over the weekend (as the industry would say it sold 1.5m admissions); it sold 134k tickets in London 13.1%; 28k Manchester 2.8%; 23k Leeds 2.3%; Sheffield 16k 1.6%.
This figures also show the huge gap between the huge box office and then admissions showing how box office always looks far more impressive as it shows how few tickets need to be sold to take huge box office.
In 1999 Marvel was close to bankruptcy and sold rights to Spider-Man and selected other characters to Sony Pictures for about $7m. Marvel was desperate for money and wanted to sell rights to all of their characters apart from X-Men, but at the time comic-book films were dead and in possibly one of the worst decisions ever Sony rejected the chance to buy all rights for $25m.
Of course, no one at that time could possibly imagined the popularity of comic-book films over the next 26 years as at that time Batman and Robin almost killed comic-book films.
As when Marvel announced they were self-funding a slate of films in 2005 it was seen as a massive gamble, Paramount Pictures came aboard to release the films globally and then after the huge success of Iron Man Disney pounced to buy Marvel for $4bn after Viacom rejected Paramount buying Marvel.
So, it was a massive gamble for Sony Pictures to get Spider-Man rights, a film had been tried to be made for more than a decade before as the rights were across multiple studios. A decade earlier Carolco Pictures and James Cameron owned Spider-Man rights and had been trying make a film for any years, but it was cancelled die to issues over rights as Cannon Films had previously owned rights in the 80s (they acquired rights for $225,000 in 1985), James Cameron left to make Titanic.
There was a battle over who owned the rights, and it ended up seeing Sony stop a development of a rival James Bond film as they had Thunderball rights and they exchanged them for MGM’s ownership of Spider-Man.
When Spider-Man opened in 2002 it was two years after 20th Century Fox’s X-Men film was a moderate success, as Spider-Man opened 9 months after 9/11 it faced a few issues as the trailer featured Spider-Man flying past the Twin Towers and the were questions about should trailers and films feature the towers after the terrorist attack, while also how New Yorkers would react to a film about the destruction of New York so soon, but it became beacon of hope and New Yorkers and the rest of the world embrace it. You mess with Spidey, you mess with New York!” and “You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us!”
While other superheroes fight in fictional cities like Gotham or Metropolis, or fly off into deep space, Spider-Man belongs to the real world. Because the 2002 film tied his identity so deeply to the grit, resilience, and recovery of real-life New York City, it forged an unbreakable emotional bond with audiences that has lasted nearly a quarter of a century.
As the original film opened at a time when the world felt fragile and broken, Spider-Man became Hollywood’s ultimate comfort food. Every time a new film comes out, it carries a piece of that original DNA: the belief that no matter how bad things get, ordinary people will stand up and help.
Spider-Man is not just a hero; he is a symbol of resilience. He is the everyman who, through courage and determination, overcame impossible odds. That is why he is so huge in the US. He reminds them of how they moved on with their lives 25 years ago. He was that all-American regular boy who was able to do it. And that is why they embrace him far more than any other MCU or DC character, because they all think they could be Spider-Man.
2021’s Spider-Man No Way Home dropped 86% in its second weekend (76% without previews) £4,619,518 and £51,107,711 52.7% of £96,903,566
It was 2-day weekend as Saturday (Christmas Day); took £31.89m over opening 5 days; £39m over 7 days (December 15th-21st) £47.8m 9 days, £51.5m 12 days and £56.7m after 14 days.
2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home dropped 69% (48% without previews) £4,396,516 and £22,550,859 60.9% of £37,037,828/£41,090,444; Toy Story 4 #2 £3,801,247 4th weekend
2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming dropped 60% (45% without previews) £3,718,078 #3 and £16,821,260 55.4% of £30,380,216/£32,489,390; War for the Planet of the Apes #1 £7,195,773; Despicable Me 3 #2 £3,839,659
The MCU Spider-Man films have been Avengers lit films as they include other MCU characters and move on the story from the earlier MCU films, Spider-Man: Homecoming was set up by Captain America: Civil War featuring Spider-Man and Black Panther. Spider-Man: Homecoming featured Tony Stark/Iron Man.
Far From Home featured Nick Fury, Maria Hill and Happy Hogan and No Way Home featured Doctor Strange and Daredevil and Brand-New Day featured The Hulk, Jean Grey, The Punisher and Yelena Belova. Brand New Day sets up Doomsday and MCU’s X-Men film. So, these Spider-Man films have to be seen as Avengers films as the audience will be similar.
2019’s Avengers: Endgame dropped 67% (54% without previews £14,331,192 and £69,330,816 77.8% of £88,692,771/£98,397,382
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is the ninth Sony-produced Spider-Man film since 2002. There are three eras, moving from the Raimi/Maguire launch in 2002, through the Webb/Garfield reboot in 2012, and into the MCU-driven Tom Holland since 2016.
Sam Raimi / Tobey Maguire trilogy: The original cycle established Spider-Man as a major UK box-office brand, with Spider-Man taking £27,529,785/£51,401,766; Spider-Man 2 £26,419,256/£47,131,011 and Spider-Man 3 £33,458,286/£53,069,479.
After the huge success of Spider-Man 3 Sam Raimi and Sony Pictures had dated Spider-Man 4 for May 2011 release but die to script issues and creative different the film was cancelled and Sony Pictures opted to develop a new version of Spider-Man directed by Marc Webb and starring Andrew Garfield, while 2012’s The Amazing Spider-Man was a hit taking £25,743,164/£32,370,917 its sequel despite taking similar £24,211,587/£28,859,347 it was seen as a disappointment given its budget and poor reviews.
The Sony Hack emails highlight the strained relationship they were then having with Andrew Garfield. This saw Sony Pictures sign a deal with Marvel in 2015 to relaunch Spider-Man within the MCU, but Sony Pictures would release the films globally. (went further into the history of Spider-Man in my earlier post The Spider-Man Story: From Bankruptcy to Cultural Icon).
- 2. The Odyssey £5,271,813 -£61,501,212
Dropped 23% in its fourth weekend.
£1.54m 29.2% (-22.61% £1.99m) Fri; £1.95m 37% (-22.3% £2.51m) Sat; £1.78m 33.78% (-23.93% £2.34m) Sun; £926k Monday
6th biggest fourth weekend between Skyfall and Inside Out 2 (close to Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Avatar: The Way of Water, Avatar and No Time To Die) and 16th biggest inflated fourth weekend between Bridget Jones’s Diary and Toy Story 2 (close to Star Wars: Phantom Menace, Mrs. Doubtfire, Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Crocodile Dundee).
The Odyssey might be an adaptation of a 3,000-year-old poem, but to the audience, it is a Nolan film. It is part of the Nolan Extended Universe. Those who went to see Oppenheimer will see The Odyssey. The same audience will always see Bond films in UK cinemas.
The film is holding exactly as expected, just slightly higher due to the higher percentage of box office from IMAX, which has inflated its gross compared to other Nolan and Bond films. He has sold IMAX as the only real way to see the film, which has made seeing it elitist. Nolanites have obsessively obtained 70mm IMAX tickets so they can say they saw it as he wanted them to.
Barbenheimer
2023’s Oppenheimer dropped 42.3% £3,167,966 and £45,794,078 78.3% of £58.5m; £873k 27.6% Fri; £1.23m 39% Sat; £1.06m 32% Sun; IMAX took 19.9% (£9.1m) from 52 cinemas over 4 weeks from 52 cinemas Stayed behind Barbie for six weeks; Oppenheimer remained in the top five for seven weeks and the top ten for ten weeks.
Stayed second behind Barbie dropping 44.1% £4,428,044 and £78,216,766 of £95,671,481; £1.4m Friday; £1.63m Saturday; £1.39m Sunday.
The Odyssey is expected to have a 100-day theatrical window, followed by PVOD in November and Sky Cinema in April 2027.
The BFI IMAX Impact
Unsurprisingly, the BFI IMAX is one of the biggest cinemas for The Odyssey. It sold out every seat of its first 173 shows until September 10th.
Over its first 24 days, its taken over £1m from about 100 shows. The BFI IMAX has about 500 seats, and the standard price is £25. Being a 15-rated film, there would be no reductions for children, while the cinema also has a premium section with slightly higher prices.
Selling out 181 shows to date with more dates to come in September it must have taken close to £2.5m. This is likely repeated at the Science Museum and Vue Manchester Printworks, the three cinemas in the UK showing it in 70mm IMAX.
These three cinemas alone have probably sold over £7m of its box office. Add the other 50 regular IMAX cinemas that have been showing it for the last three weeks, and it must be over £10m.
The Economics of Exclusivity
These are complete estimates, as no IMAX/PLF box office figures have been released. But if a normal film takes about 15% from IMAX and another 40% from PLF, then IMAX must have taken at least 30% of the weekend box office.
The Nolan Effect: Unintentional Gentrification
When Christopher Nolan talks about how 70mm IMAX is the only true way to watch his films, he is not just advocating for medium purity. He is unintentionally providing the marketing narrative for cinema’s gentrification.
Nolan comparisons fourth weekends
2010’s Inception dropped 30% £2,259,595 #3 from 468 screens and £25,719,644 72.9% of £35,264,403; dropped 25% in the fifth weekend £1,681,130; in the top 5 for 5 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
2020’s Tenet dropped 35% £796,309 #1 from 616 screens and £13,879,635 79.3% of £17,479,421; dropped 18% in the fifth weekend taking £648,517 held #1 for 8 weeks and in the top 5 for 9 weeks and top 10 for 10 weeks
2017’s Dunkirk dropped 43% taking £2,634,839 #1 from 677 screens and £44,794,468 78.9% of £56,797,955; dropped 26% in the fifth weekend taking £1,938,125 held #1 for 4 weeks and in the top 5 for 8 weeks and top 10 for 10 weeks.
2014’s Interstellar dropped 38% £1,157,875 #5 from 413 screens and £18,001,495 86.3% of £20,852,599; dropped 47% in the fifth weekend taking £610,289 and in the top 5 for 4 weeks and top 10 for 6 weeks.
2005’s Batman Begins dropped 53% £782,152 #2 from 461 screens and £13,871,254 82.9% of £16,733,960: top 5 for 5 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
2008’s The Dark Knight dropped 43% £2,302,866 #1 from 499 screens and £40,153,039 81.3% of £49,411,323: top 5 for 6 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
2012’s The Dark Knight Rises dropped 48% £2,196,4495 #2 from 548 screens and £46,259,177 82% of £56,446,768: top 5 for 6 weeks and top 10 for 8 weeks.
Homer and the First Comic Books
Homer composed The Iliad and The Odyssey around the 8th century BCE, roughly 500 years after the Trojan War is believed to have taken place (around 1200 BCE). In that half-millennium, before writing was common, the story was passed down orally from generation to generation, like a game of Chinese whispers. By the time Homer wrote it down, the events would have been hugely exaggerated and transformed.
Homer was not writing history as we understand it. He was creating an exaggerated, mythologised narrative from the raw material of distant memory. He took those scattered stories and crafted them into the foundational myth of Western literature.
The Chinese Whispers Effect
| What Happened | The Result |
| 500 years of oral tradition | The story was passed down from generation to generation |
| No written records | Each retelling added new details |
| Exaggeration over time | The events became more extreme |
| A local war became an epic | A king’s journey became a hero’s quest |
You only need to play Chinese whispers with a small group of people to see how quickly a story changes. Now imagine 500 years of that process. The story would have been transformed beyond recognition.
The First Comic Books
| What Homer Did | What Comic Books Do |
| Took a local war and made it epic | Take ordinary struggles and make them heroic |
| Added gods and monsters | Add superpowers and villains |
| Created a hero’s journey | Create origin stories |
| Shaped Western literature | Shape popular culture |
So, you could see Homer’s The Iliad and The Odyssey as almost the first comic books. The stories would surely have been made much more extreme. A local conflict became a ten-year war between gods and heroes. A king’s struggle to return home became a journey filled with monsters, magic, and divine intervention.
Homer and the Fantasy Blockbuster
You could see The Odyssey as we do The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and even films based on biblical stories. It is not just an ancient poem; it is the original fantasy blockbuster.
| What They Share | Why It Works |
| A hero’s journey | A protagonist who must overcome impossible odds |
| A world of magic and monsters | A setting that is different from our own |
| A clear moral framework | Good vs. evil, loyalty vs. betrayal |
| A sense of scale | The fate of the world hangs in the balance |
The Lord of the Rings has Frodo’s quest to destroy the Ring. Harry Potter has Harry’s battle against Voldemort. Game of Thrones has the fight for the Iron Throne. The Odyssey has Odysseus’s journey home.
They are the same story, told in different ways.
The Biblical Connection
Biblical epics share the same DNA. They are stories about divine intervention, moral testing, and the struggle between good and evil. They are not history, they are mythology. And they have been hugely popular with audiences for decades.
| Biblical Epic | The Parallel |
| The Ten Commandments | A hero’s journey through the desert |
| Ben-Hur | A man’s quest for redemption |
| The Passion of the Christ | Sacrifice and salvation |
| Noah | A world-ending flood and a chosen hero |
Audiences have always been drawn to these stories because they tap into something universal: the desire for meaning, the hope for redemption, and the belief that ordinary people can do extraordinary things.
Why Fantasy Works
| What It Offers | Why Audiences Love It |
| Escapism | A break from reality |
| Heroes and villains | Clear moral stakes |
| Magic and monsters | A sense of wonder |
| A journey | A story that moves |
Medieval and modern fantasy films have been hugely popular with audiences for decades. The Odyssey is the original version of that story. And that is another reason why it has connected with audiences.
The Nolan Connection
This is what Christopher Nolan was talking about in his interviews in China. He was not talking about politics. He was talking about the origin story. He was pointing out that Homer’s epics were already a reinterpretation of events, a mythologised version of a distant past. And that is exactly what he was doing with his own film: creating another interpretation of the same story.
The Box Office Defence
Of course, people will say: who cares? It has taken over $1bn and over £60m in the UK. But the difference is that you surely expect more from a Christopher Nolan film than a Transformers film.
Transformers is a spectacle. It is designed to be seen, not remembered. It is not expected to have emotional depth. It is not expected to have well-written female characters. It is not expected to win awards for its screenplay. Nolan’s films are different. They are treated as art. They are expected to be more than spectacle. They are expected to have emotional depth, strong characters, and a meaningful story.
The Oscar Gap
With Oppenheimer, Nolan finally won his Oscars. With The Odyssey, the film will likely sweep the BAFTAs and Oscars next year, for all categories except adapted screenplay and female acting awards. The Odyssey will sweep the awards but will not win for writing. That is the gap.
- 3. Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie £1,672,975 – NE
Took £566,364 from previews.
Took £306k 18.36% Friday; £396k 23.76% Saturday; £400k 24% Sunday.
1,131st biggest opening between Final Destination 2 and Green Book (close to Happy Feet 2, Haunted Mansion (2004), Aladdin (1993), and Open Season) and 1,729th biggest inflated opening between Marmaduke and My Little Eye (close to Days Of Thunder, Young Einstein, Michael (1997), and Inspector Gadget).
45th biggest opening over the last 52 weeks between Freakier Friday and The Bad Guys 2 (close to The Naked Gun, Tron: Ares, Mortal Kombat 2 and Send Help).
UK Box Office History
2019’s Paw Patrol Mighty Pups opened £521,505 taking £1,154,936
2020’s Paw Patrol: Ready, Race, Rescue opened £483,886 taking £1,772,296
2023’s Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie opened £3,348,155 (£2,004,484 previews) taking £8,020,233
The Merchandise Empire
Paw Patrol is the biggest global children’s TV show, far bigger than Bluey, broadcast in over 160 countries. Paw Patrol merchandise has sold over $15bn worldwide. An estimated 97% of the franchise’s total earnings come from merchandise, and there are over 100,000 different Paw Patrol products. The show is, effectively, a 22-minute TV advert.
The Cinema Paradox
Despite Paw Patrol’s huge popularity on TV and in merchandising, the films have struggled to be as successful in cinemas.
It is surely similar to Peppa Pig: hugely popular on TV, but why would you pay to see something you can watch at home? Young children are not fixated on seeing the latest episode; they can watch the same episode a hundred times.
- 4. Toy Story 5 £728,851 – £53,938,340
Down 30.7% in its eighth weekend
Took £222k 30.66% Friday; £247k 34.12% Saturday; £255k 35.22% Sunday.
44th biggest eighth weekend between Michael and LOTR: Return of the King (close to The Grinch, Minions: The Rise of Gru, Mamma Mia 2 and Mufasa: The Lion King) and 99th biggest inflated eighth weekend between Michael and Doctor Dolittle (close to A Few Good Men, Pulp Fiction, The Wedding Singer and Three Men and a Little Lady)
5th biggest Pixar eighth weekend between Toy Story 3 and Inside Out (close to Incredibles 2, Incredibles, Finding Nemo, and Toy Story 2) and 8th biggest inflated eighth weekend between Incredibles 2 and Inside Out (close to Toy Story 2, Finding Nemo, Ratatouille and Monsters, Inc).
Eighth weekends Toy Story films
2019’s Toy Story 4 up 19.9% £1,624,953 and £58,766,431 89% of £66,030,065/£73,254,961
2010’s Toy Story 3 dropped 19% £756,575 /£1,018,515 and £71,015,148 96.7% of £73,405,113/£98,819,320.
Toy Story 3 was in the top 5 for 9 weeks (taking £1m+ for 6 weeks) and in the top 10 for 12 weeks (taking £261,359 in its 12th weekend).
2000’s Toy Story 2 dropped 33.9% £484,622/£913,370 and £40,936,825 94.1% of £43,491,021/£81,967,783
1996’s Toy Story dropped 38.1% £269,788/£530,959 and £20,208,592 90.6% of £22,297,733/£43,883,253
Other Pixar eighth weekends
2018’s Incredibles 2 dropped 39.9% £762,307/£845,717 and £53,279,019 95% of £56.1m/£62.3m
2024’s Inside Out 2 dropped 16.4% £939,144 and £52,218,942 88.9% of £58,721,001/£60,769,408
48th biggest between Super Mario Bros and Frozen 2 (close to Bohemian Rhapsody, Fantastic Beasts, Michael and The Full Monty) and 111th biggest inflated between Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves and The World Is Not Enough (close to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Fatal Attraction and Chicken Run).
Toy Story was the 56th film to take over £50m in the UK since 1997’s The Full Monty and the 4th film this year to take over £50m after Micheal and The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. With Avengers Doomsday likely to be the next film to take £50m+ opening in December.
- 5. Minions & Monsters £538,975 – £16,066,812
Down 30.8% in its sixth weekend.
Took £175k 32.65% Friday; £178k 33.21% Saturday; £183k 34.14% Sunday.
270th biggest sixth weekend between Toy Story and Jason Bourne (close to Lilo & Stitch (2025), Hotel Transylvania 2, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Fantastic Beasts 2) and 463rd biggest inflated sixth weekend between Disney’s Christopher Robin and Bird on a Wire (close to Tangled, Peter Rabbit, Avengers: Endgame and Waterworld).
Sixth weekends
2022’s Minions: The Rise of Gru dropped 44.2% £1,110,963 and £36,707,089 80.2% of £45,764,546
Despicable Me 4 dropped 21.8% £1,195,158 and £38,786,080 80.8% of £48,001,206
2017’s Despicable Me 3 dropped 47.1% £1,189,440/£1,272,018 and £39,340,831 82.7% of £47,562,575
2015’s Minions dropped 55.6% £1,007,186/£1,118,940 and £40,042,323 85% of £47,645,626
2013’s Despicable Me 2 dropped 38.2% £1,289,450/£1,581,699 and £38,451,837 81.2% of £47,436,199
2010’S Despicable Me dropped 40.6% £648,479/£872,994 and £19,066,830 96.5% of £19,670,786
444th biggest between Signs and There’s Something About Mary (close to The Muppets, Forrest Gump, Casper and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) and 758th biggest inflated between Kill Bill – Volume 2 and The Lion King 3D (close to Mr. Peabody and Sherman, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Dick Tracy, and Rise of the Guardians).
Also opened
Andre Rieu’s 2026 Summer Concert: Viva Maastricht opened £499,761 #6 (Sat/Sun from 548 screens
Had the lowest opening for an Andre Rieu Concert; lower than last years Andre Rieu’s 2025 Maastricht Concert: Waltz The Night Away! Opened £566,325 #7 547 screens and in April, Andre Rieu’s 75th Birthday Celebration: The Dream Continues, £596,897.
These concerts have been regularly released each year since 2014; being the most popular between 2016 and 2019 opening between £1.4m-£1.8m; but audiences have not embraced them as strongly since COVID. As they come with Event Cinema ticket price premiums about £20, the 2026 concert only attracted about 25,000 admissions from over 500 screens and about 1,000 shows.
The other new released performed much worse horror Ice Cream Man only managed to scare £308,197 #8 from 410 screens including £67,150 from previews; while Disney pointlessly released Super Troopers 3 opened with £31,967 #17 from 213 screens.
Warner Bros re-released 1999’s Practical Magic ahead of the sequel opening next month; the Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman film opened £61,488 #13 from 338 screens and £3,339,394.
Practical Magic opened £1,001,536/£1,905,535 taking £3,339,394/£5,684,446.
It was surprising Warner Bros opted to make a sequel 28 years later as unlike other legacy sequels the original film wasn’t a huge box office success taking $46.73m in the US and $95.43m worldwide, it’s hard to see the sequel connecting strongly with audiences as the original film hasn’t got the fanbase of Disney’s Hocus Pocus and they released the sequel straight to streaming.
That said the cast of the sequel is fabulous Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Joey King, Maisie Williams, Dianne Wiest, and Stockard Channing, playing to all generations of women.
The original has accumulated affection and recognition over decades, so there’s unquestionably legacy value there. But legacy awareness is not automatically theatrical urgency. It would need to turn nostalgia into an event rather than merely recognition of the IP.
Box office will likely continue to drop off over the next few weeks as its hard to see a new opener until Practical Magic 2 on September 11th to open above £2m and then Shaun The Sheep: The Beast Of Mossy Bottom opening 7 years after the last film.
Other Box Office news
After 13 weeks in the top 10 Obsession £92,697 #10 from 454 screens taking £19,631,351; while the industry and wider media have spoken endlessly about how incredible the summer has been the huge box office of Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey
Its films like Obsession, The Housemaid, Marty Supreme, The Drama, Backrooms and the Magic Fairway Tree that deserve the create as they were all films few would have expected to take half of what they took.
While despite all the hypeSpider-Man: Brand New Day, The Odyssey, Toy Story 5, and Micheal all took exactly what analysis predicted at the start of the year.
Its films like Obsession that find a much wider audience than they were expected to see as audience discover they were very different films to what they were initially marketed as.
2026 BO is currently up 16% from 2025.
The weekend’s top 10 box office took £21,767,838 down 52.9% from last weekend’s £46,259,210, 2,683,748 admissions, down 53.5% from 5,775,182 admissions.
4th biggest weekend of the last 52 weeks between 21 November 2025 #1 Wicked: For Good £18,858,825 (84.59%) and 19 June 2026 #1 Toy Story 5 £15,361,194 (75.97%)
16th biggest since cinemas reopened out of 299 weeks between 23 May 2025 #1 Lilo & Stitch £9,568,923 (43.63%) and 07 April 2023 #1 Super Mario Bros £15,691,810 (74.07%)
61st biggest top 10 of the last 25 years (out of 1,269) between 22 November 2019 #1 Frozen 2 £15,088,012 (68.85%) and 02 April 2010 #1 Clash of the Titans £5,682,875 (26.11%) and 206th biggest inflated between 01 July 2005 #1 War of the Worlds £8,644,787 (72.59%) and 07 February 2003 #1 Two Weeks’ Notice £2,636,050 (23.52%))
The top 3 took £18,993,246 (87.3%) of the top 10; Spider-Man: Brand New Day 55.3% (£12,048,458); The Odyssey 24.2% (£5,271,813); Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie 7.7% (£1,672,975)
230th biggest percentage share #1 (55.35%) between 20 July 2007 #1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix £6,639,973 (55.47%) and 02 June 2023 #1 Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse £9,159,823 (55.31%)
144th biggest admissions (1,504,177) between 02 July 2010 #1 Shrek Forever After £8,955,554 (1,505,135) and 21 November 2003 #1 Love Actually £6,657,479 (1,499,432)
Up 119.3% from 2025; (£9,926,226); Weapons (£2,818,535); Freakier Friday (£1,758,698); Stans (£212,163); Sense And Sensibility (30th Anniversary) (£45,946); #1 Weapons £2,818,5351st week 619 screens (28.39% of top 10)
Up 55.6% from 2024; (£13,987,592); It Ends With Us (£4,516,760); Trap (£1,141,334); Borderlands (£843,159); Spider-Man 2 (2004) (£208,243); Bluey At The Cinema: Family Trip Collection (£181,276); #1 It Ends With Us £4,516,760 1st week 625 screens (32.29% of top 10).
Up 56.2% from 2023; (£13,935,685); Gran Turismo: Based On A True Story (£1,045,838); Haunted Mansion (£990,084); Enter The Dragon (50th Anniversary) (£36,378); #1 Barbie £4,428,044 4th week 44% drop 777 screens (31.77% of top 10)
Up 235.5% from 2022 (£6,488,377); Nope (£1,859,337); Tomorrow Never Dies (Re: 2022) (£7,825); The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Re: 2011) (£3,371); #1 Nope £1,859,337 1st week 676 screens (28.7% of top 10)
Up 145% 2021 (£8,885,507); Free Guy (£2,477,891); The Paw Patrol Movie (£2,410,496); Do not Breathe 2 (£349,702); The Courier (£339,020); #1 Free Guy £2,477,891 1st week from 627 screens (27.9% of top 10)
Up 3,940% from 2020: (£538,716); American Pickle (£27,732); #1 Unhinged £117,633 2nd week 270 screens 34 drop (21.84% of top 10)
Up 72.3% from 2019; (£12,630,683); Blinded by the Light (£966,095); Playmobil (£376,296); Bring the Soul: The Movie (Concert) (£237,537); The Art of Racing in the Rain (£197,009); #1 The Lion King £4,366,824 down 16% 4th week 714 screens (34.6% of top 10)
Up 32.4% from 2018: (£16,439,374); The Meg (£3,651,111); The Darkest Minds (£388,325); Dog Days (£59,223); Heathers (30th Anniversary) (£43,462); Pope Francis – A Man of His Word (£21,593); #1 The Meg £3,651,111 1st week 499 screens (22.2% of top 10)
Up 104.1% from 2017: (£10,664,274); Annabelle: Creation (£1,960,203); Atomic Blonde (£1,686,430); The Nut Job 2: Nutty By Nature (£354,276); A Ghost Story (£133,899); Overdrive (£60,043); Step (£5,039); #1 Dunkirk £2,634,839 4th week 677 screens 43% drop (24.7% of top 10)
Up 60.1% from 2016: (£13,670,811); Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (£1,068,522); Pete’s Dragon (£844,090); Nerve (£803,457); The Shallows (£800,963); Wiener-Dog (£86,423); #1 Suicide Squad £4,241,508 2nd week 587 screens 62% drop (31.1% of the top 10)
Up 116.6% from 2015; (£10,047,581); Fantastic Four (£2,686,176); The Gift (£584,552); The Diary of a Teenage Girl (£81,185); The Rape of Lucretia – Glyndebourne 2015 (£29,796); Marshland (£40,060); Max (£38,901); #1 Fantastic Four £2,686,176 1st week 539 screens (26.7% of top 10)
Up 1.5% from 2014: (£21,448,750); The Inbetweeners 2 (£12,538,114); La Traviata – Glyndebourne 2014 (£112,970); All this Mayhem (£12,247); #1 The Inbetweeners 2 £12,538,114 1st week 509 screens (58.4% of top 10)
Up 49.9% from 2013: (£14,517,689); Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (£2,175,850); Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (£2,137,835); Grown Ups 2 (£2,075,831); The Lone Ranger (£1,342,196); Barbie Mariposa & The Fairy Princess (£33,161); #1 Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa £2,175,850 1st week 441 screens (14.9% of top 10)
Up 154.8% from 2012 (£8,544,393); Step-Up 4: Miami Heat (£680,052); Offender (£74,154); The Lodger (Re: 2012) (£30,131); 360 (£25,834); The Dinosaur Project (£7,586); #1 Ted £3,174,766 2nd week 513 screens 66% drop (37.1% of top 10)
Up 34.7% from 2011; (£12,426,990); Super 8 (£2,207,063); Mr Popper’s Penguins (£1,515,248); Sarah’s Key (£116,211); #1 Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 £2,810,088 4th week 525 screens 38% drop (22.6% of top 10)
Up 73.4% from 2010: (£16,470,599); Knight & Day (£2,404,163); Step Up 3 (£2,015,403); Cats & Dogs: Revenge of Kitty Galore (£1,553,005); #1 Toy Story 3 £4,666,021 3rd week 555 screens 62% drop (28.3% of top 10)
Up 131.9% from 2009; (£9,386,362); The Ugly Truth (£1,976,043); G. I. Joe (£1,708,760); Orphan (£570,146); Mesrine: Killer Instinct (£135,999); Adam (£23,201); #1 The Ugly Truth £1,976,043 1st week 400 screens (21.1% of top 10)
Up 41.8% from 2008; (£15,353,692); The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (£4,434,650); Make it Happen (£505,820); The Fox and the Child (£132,441); Elegy (£71,274); Death Defying Acts (£3,977); CJ7 (£437); #1 The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor £4,434,650 1st week 477 screens (28.8% of top 10)
Up 121.5% from 2007: (£9,824,857); Rush Hour 3 (£2,731,998); Surf’s Up (£601,289); License to Wed (£268,016); Waitress (£105,910); The Walker (£44,623); #1 Rush Hour 3 £2,731,998 1st week 359 screens (27.8% of top 10)
Up 155.4% from 2006; (£8,521,761); Monster House (£1,030,305); Nacho Libre (£993,948); Lady in the Water (£452,744); #1 Cars £1,340,219 3rd week (2 weeks #1) 498 screens 27% drop (15.7% of top 10)
Up 157.1% from 2005: (£8,464,617); The Island (£1,481,647); Crash (£818,604); The Perfect Catch (£272,285); The Bad News Bears (£45,514); #1 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory £2,886,352 3rd week 523 screens 35% drop (34.1% of top 10)
Up 116.9% from 2004 (£10,036,048); I, Robot (£4,745,541); 13 Going On 30 (£1,184,273); Home on the Range (£198,226); #1 I, Robot £4,745,541 1st week 447 screens (47.3% of top 10)
Up 157.5% from 2003 (£8,452,765); The Pirates of the Caribbean (£3,765,450); Rugrats Go Wild (£360,005); What A Girl Wants (£220,217); #1 The Pirates of the Caribbean £3,765,450 1st week 447 screens (44.6% of top 10)
Up 139.5% from 2002 (£9,089,415); Eight-Legged Freaks (£1,031,494); Heaven (£78,207); #1 Men In Black 2 £3,106,105 2nd week 49% drop 512 screens (34.2% of top 10)
Up 126.4% from 2001 (£9,615,584); The Parole Officer (£902,028); Help! I am a Fish (£81,908); #1 Cats and Dogs £2,813,072 2nd week 453 screens 24% drop (29.2% of top 10).
Next week: (£7,946,311); Materialists (£1,287,221); Coolie (£939,508); Together (£504,490); War 2 (£503,416); Nobody 2 (£475,724); #1 Weapons £1,557,828 2nd weekend down 45% 653 screens (19.60% of top 10).
July box office
Took £178m up 35% from last July £132m due to The Odyssey, Toy Story 5, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day opening weekend and that it was a 5-week month compared with 4 weeks last year. As Spider-Man: Brand New Day £53m opening week box office was included despite taking only £20m up to July 31st.
The year-to-date is £783m up 18% ahead of 2025 and 34% ahead of 2024; 2026 will be the biggest year since COVID, but still about 25% down in 2019. 2026 was always expected to be the biggest year since COVID.
While the UK is still behind 2019 levels French box office for the same 7 months has seen 107.9 million (€800m), up 20.5% year-on-year. Box office was always going to return to 2019 levels very quickly due to ticket inflation and the growth of IMAX and Lux seating but admissions was always going to take much longer to return to 2019 levels, so why have France managed to do it far quicker than the UK despite the UK seen to be a much bigger territory for cinema?
Top July films
| 1 The Odyssey £56.2m |
| 2 Spider-Man: Brand New Day £53m |
| 3 Toy Story 5 £20.9m of £53.2m |
| 4 Minions & Monsters £15.5m |
| 5 Moana £11.4m |
| 6 The Invite £3.7m |
| 7 Obsession £2.5m of £19.5m |
| 8 Evil Dead Burn £2.4m |
| 9 Supergirl £2m of £5.8m |
| 10 Disclosure Day £1.5m of £12.9m |
July was the first time two films have taken over £50m in a single month, but these two films took over 60% of the months box office and add Toy Story 5 those three films took almost 75% of July’s b ox office. Normally box office is share over many more films.
The problem is audiences are seeing the must-see films but not seeing the others, and the others include Minions & Monsters, its predecessors have been sure things and the failure of Moana. While films 6-10 took about £11m between them, showing the gap between the biggest 10 films and the rest is getting wider and wider. This has been seen for many years but as the biggest films take more the industry does not seem concerned.
| Biggest 2026 films |
| 1 The Odyssey £56.2m |
| 2 Toy Story 5 £53.2m |
| 3 Michael £53.2m |
| 4 Spider-Man: Brand New Day £53m |
| 5 The Super Mario Galaxy Movie £38.5m |
| 6 Project Hail Mary £34.7m |
| 7 The Devil Wears Prada 2 £34.3m |
| 8 Wuthering Heights £25.2m |
| 9 The Housemaid £32.2m |
| 10 Obsession £19.5m |
While 2026 started with many surprise performing far stronger than expected including The Housemaid, Marty Supreme, The Drama, The Magic Faraway Tree, Backroom and Obsession. The rest are very predictable even Micheal as Micheal Jackson fanbase is massive after his 2009 50 O2 concerts sold out in hours so was almost going to perform similar to Bohemian Rhapsody. Similarly with The Devil Wears Prada 2, Project Hail Mary, and Wuthering Heights, while The Super Mario Galaxy Movie took much less than expected as that was surely expected to take £50m but was likely affected by The Magic Faraway Tree.
US Box Office
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day — Sony Pictures
Dropped 60% in its second weekend $144.25m and $655.34m
3rd biggest opening after Star Wars: The Force Awakens $149.2m and Avengers: Endgame $147.38m and ahead of Avengers: Infinity War $114.7m and Black Panther $111.6m
PLF screens added IMAX screens taking 33% with IMAX taking $9.8m 7% from 300 IMAX cinemas.
Took $9.8m from IMAX and $42.4m worldwide total from the US, China, Japan, and South Korea
10th biggest film worldwide between Titanic and Jurassic World (close to Black Panther, Avatar: The Way of Water and Avengers: Infinity War)
Brand New Day is currently $34m ahead of Avenger Endgame and $115m ahead of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. So, would expect it to become the first $1bn film in the US as it has no competition for over a month, its likely to remain #1 till mid-September.
Avengers second weekends
2012’s Avengers dropped 50.3% $103.05m ad $373.07m of $623.35m and $1.51bn worldwide
2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron dropped 59.4% $77.7m and $313.4m of $45m and $1.4bn worldwide
2018’s Avengers Infinity War 55.5% taking $114.7m and $453.1m of $678,8m and $2.048bn WW
2019’s Avengers Endgame dropped 58.7% taking $147.38m and $103.1m and $621.27m of $858.37m and $279bn worldwide
- EntTelligence estimated 24.1m admissions, ahead of Spider-Man: No Way Home on 20m.
2021’s Spider-Man No Way Home dropped 68.7% $84.52m and $470.35m 57.2% of $814.86m; took $5.5m (6.5%) from IMAX in the US $38m total and $9.6m worldwide and $61.5m worldwide
Spider-Man: Homecoming dropped 62.2% taking $44.2m and $207.27m 62% of $334.2m and $545.96m and $880.16m WW).
Spider-Man: Far From Home dropped 51% taking $45.35m and $274.58m 70.3%, of $390.53m and $747.39m and $1.13bn WW)
Spider-Man dropped 37.8% taking $71.41m and $223.04m 54.8% of $407.02m; $418m international and $825.02m
Spider-Man 2 dropped 48.7% taking $45.18m and $256.43m of $373.58m; $415.39m international and $788.97m WW.
Spider-Man 3 dropped 61.5% taking $58.16m and $240.23m of $336.53m and $558.45m and $894.98m WW.
The Amazing Spider-Man dropped 44.2% taking $34.62m and $200.5m of $262.02m and $495.9m and $757.93m WW.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 dropped 61.2% taking $35.5m and $146.2m of $202.85m and $506.12m and $708.98m WW.
International
Spider-Man: No Way Home dropped 64.4% $121.4m from 61 territories (32,600+ screens) $587.1m total and $1.05bn worldwide; UK $68.9m; Mexico $52.8m; South Korea $41.1m; France $35.8m; Brazil $31.7m; Australia $31.4m; India $29.7m; Russia $28.5m; Italy $21.2m; Germany $20m; Spain $16.5m; it was then 21st biggest film worldwide between Iron Man 3 and Minions and then the 46th film to take over $1bn worldwide since Jurassic Park in 1993 Brand New Day is the 65th
Spider-Man: Brand New Day took 4 days to take $1bn; Spider-Man No Way Home took 12 days; Avengers: Infinity War 11 days and Avengers: Endgame 5 days.
Brand New Day took $236m down 48% from 66 territories, playing on more than 72,800 screens taking $1.1bn total international and $1.67bn worldwide; China $186.7m; India $52.8m; Brazil $46.3m; UK $87.4m; Mexico $65.8m; France $49.2m; Australia $39.1m; Germany $37.6m; Italy $31.1m.
- The Odyssey – Universal Pictures
Dropped 38% in its fourth weekend $31.72m and $461.38m.
12th biggest fourth weekend between The Revenant and Inside Out 2 (close to The Avengers, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Deadpool & Wolverine and Avengers: Endgame).
The Dark Knight #25 $26.1m; The Dark Knight Rises #81 $18.97m; Oppenheimer #86 $18.81m; Inception #88 $18.5m
Christopher Nolan films have taken over $7bn worldwide; statements like “Christopher Nolan has earned audiences’ trust by consistently delivering must-see theatrical events” and “Nolan’s epic film has been at the forefront of culture, with audiences seeking out premium formats and repeat viewings for this once-in-a-lifetime cinematic journey.”
Makes me think of the famous Spider-Man line with great power comes great responsibility, as Nolan should be using his power and influence to develop new talent as the likes of Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and James Cameron used to produce films from upcoming directors as having Nolan attached as producer would get studios to want to release them too.
Premium-format impact
EntTelligence said average ticket prices for Odyssey were general $15.32; 70MM $22.46 and 70MM IMAX $27.77
Has taken to date 26% $289.3m worldwide from IMAX; $147.3m US and $141.9m international; it is the highest grossing IMAX film worldwide overtaking Avatar.
IMAX 70mm at 41 cinemas worldwide have taken $37.5m; TCL Chinese Theatre has taken $2.8m to date the highest grossing in any IMAX cinemas in the US.
The Odyssey will play in IMAX cinemas until September 17th and opens in 800 IMAX cinemas this weekend in China and then in Japan In September.
Oppenheimer comparison
2023’s Oppenheimer dropped 35% $18.81m and $264.28m of $330.07m and $975.81m worldwide; stayed in the top five for seven weeks and remained in the top ten for ten weeks, taking more than $1m every week during that run; after 4 weeks took IMAX $75.8m (28.7%) from 400 IMAX screens and 19 70mm IMAX.
Other Nolan benchmarks fourth weekends
2020’s Tenet dropped 26.7% $3.34m #1 taking $41.2m 70.4% of $58.5m and $365.3m WW; dropped 20.4% in the fifth weekend taking $2.66m; held #1 for 5 weeks and stayed in top 10 for 13 weeks.
2017’s Dunkirk dropped 36.5% $10.88m taking $153.91m 81.8% of $188.045m and $525.24m WW; dropped 39.2% in the fifth weekend taking $6.61m held #1 for 2 weeks and stayed in the top 10 for 9 weeks.
2014’s Interstellar was up 2.6% $15.74m #4 taking $147.03m 78.2% of $188.02m and $677.89m WW; Dropped 50.5% in the fifth weekend taking $7.78m stayed in the top 10 for 6 weeks.
2010’s Inception dropped 32.7% $18.5m #2 taking $227.63m 77.8% of $292.57m and $825.79m WW; dropping 39% in the fifth weekend $11.28m held #1 for 3 weeks and staying in the top 10 for 11 weeks.
2008’s The Dark Knight dropped 38.8% $26.11m #1 taking $441.62m 82.8% of $533.34m and $1.003bn WW; dropped 37.3% in the fifth weekend $16.37m held #1 for 4 weeks and stayed in the top 10 for 10 weeks.
2012’s The Dark Knight Rises 46.9% $18.97m #3 taking $389.58m 87% of $448.13m and $1.081bn WW; dropped 42% in the fifth weekend $11.01m; held #1 for 3 weeks and stayed in the top 10 for 8 weeks.
Internationally
Oppenheimer took $30.9m (down 44.4%) from 79 territories $383.8m total and $648.1m worldwide; UK $58.1m; Germany $35.4m; France $28m; Australia $21m; India $17.7m; Mexico $16.8m; Spain $16.3m; Holland $14.3m; Brazil $11.6m; Saudi Arabia $11m; $58.7m internationally IMAX (15.3%) and $134.4m total.
$55.6m (down 27.9%) from 78 territories $327.2m total and $553m worldwide (expected to take $700m+); UK $50.3m; Germany $28.3m; France $24.2m; Australia $18.2m; India $16.1m; Mexico $14.5m; Spain $13.7m; took $49.6m internationally IMAX and $114.2m total (20.65%).
Took $79.2m from 73 territories $643.6m total and $1.1bn worldwide $84.2m; France $56.5m; Italy $50.6m; Germany $39.3m; Mexico $30.5m; Spain $29.8m.
Playing in 441 IMAX cinemas taking 16%, including seven 70mm IMAX internationally taking $44.7m US $22.1m from US taking 43% of its third weekend and $22.6m from international 26% of its third weekend) and $221m total worldwide; 70MM IMAX took $5.1m and $27.6m.
- One Night Only – Universal Pictures
Opened $5.5m; received average reviews (45% Rotten Tomatoes) and B+ CinemaScore.
Took $750k from Thursday previews.
The problem with Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey holding strongly means that the new releases struggled to find an audience, it did not help that neither of them were any good and probably should have gone straight to streaming.
50% of its audience were women over 25.
Will Gluck has directed several great rom-coms 2010’s Easy A, 2011’s Friends with Benefits, 2023’s Anyone But You but One Night Only was not anywhere nearly as good. It was compared to The Purge, Before Sunrise, Anyone But You, and Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist.
Will Gluck said he removed nudity from the film as people dislike sex on screen, but the whole film is about having sex on one night only, so means lots of fumbling and talking.
It had a strong social media following 355m across TikTok, X, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram more than both It Ends With Us 337m and Anyone But You 99m, but that means nothing if audiences are not interested.
It will drop heavily in its second weekend and be released om PVOD in three weeks, it shows again that films should have a blanket 45-day window, they need to be flexible, as it would be madness to have a 45-day window for One Night Only as it will be dumped out of cinemas within two weeks.
- Super Troopers 3 – Searchlight Pictures
Opened $4m; received average reviews (49% Rotten Tomatoes) and B- CinemaScore
Took $350k from Thursday previews.
Opened 25 years after the first film was released 2001’s Super Troopers opened $6.3m taking $18.49m and $23.18m worldwide.
2018’s Super Troopers 2 opened $15.18m taking $30.61m and $31.62m worldwide
Searchlight Pictures promoted the film last month at Comic-Con two weekends ago with a world premiere and a beer pong games pub.
UK Box Office Top 10
Box Office Preview
Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey will old top two places for a third week as the new releases will struggle again to find a wide audience, Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie managed to do it due it its extended previews.
Impossible to compare with Spider-Man: No Way Home third weekend as it was New Year Eve weekend up 31% from 2 day weekend £6,055,345 and £69,849,930 and also hard to compare with the third weekend of Avengers: Endgame dropping 69% £4,414,015 and £80,439,499 as it had Pokemon Detective Pikachu opening #1 £4,951,838.
While the new releases this weekend will not have any impact on Brand New Day, but it will still drop about 50% taking £5.5m-£6m similar to the third weekend of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Avatar, Avenger Infinity War, Top Gun: Maverick, Joker and A Minecraft Movie.
The Odessey will have a similar fifth weekend as Avatar: The Way of Water, Skyfall, Titanic, and No Time To Die, as it continues to hold like a Bond film in the UK and IMAX is central to its box office. IMAX must be 15%+ of its total BO now taking over £10m+, but of course apart from knowing BFI IMAX has sold out over 181 shows and sold out many more at the Science Museum and Vue Manchester no figures have been made public. The 181 shows at the BFI IMAX would have taken at least £2.3m.
While Spider-Man: Brand New Day, The Odyssey and Toy Story 5 have performed exactly as expected it would be fabulous if audiences were to embrace British comedy Sunny Dancer. August has been historical a very strong month for British comedy films over the last 30+ years. 31 years ago, saw the release of the hugely successful The Full Monty, but also The Inbetweeners movies and Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa amongst many others.
20 years ago, Sunny Dancer is the type of feel-good British comedy audiences would connect with, but now it will struggle to find an audience, that said I Swear managed to do that last October opening £1,185,756 taking £5,572,229.
It would be good for True Brit to have a real box office hit as their biggest to date was 2025’s Marching Powder opening £1,079,492 taking £2,106,354. True Brit was launched in 2023 focusing on British films but their films to date have highlighted the struggle of British films for the last decade.
Sci-fi survival film The End of Oak Street starring Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor, directed by David Robert Mitchell (It Follows) and produced by J. J. Abrams has been described as Jurassic Park meets Jumanji influenced by Steven Spielberg films.
This was evident in the early social media reactions to the film, If it is this kind of film why have Warner Bros seemingly dumped it in August opening 15 months after it was originally set to be released, especially opening the week after Netlix’s The Last House which has a very similar plot. Being shifted from a prime summer slot to mid-August suggests Warner Bros may have limited confidence in the film, especially alongside the later delay of The Great Beyond to 2027.
The film was shot for IMAX but with The Odyssey holding IMAX screens audiences will not get to see the film in IMAX in the UK.
From the trailers it felt like a Cloverfield film but as its made by Warner Bros it cannot be as that was made by Paramount with J. J. Abrams.
2016’s 10 Cloverfield Lane opened £1,601,161 taking £5,029,725
2008’s Cloverfield opened £3,485,956 taking £9,120,932
The End of Oak Street could open similar to 10 Cloverfield Lane, but likely to open under £1m.
Coming Soon
- The Dog Stars – Disney
Post-apocalyptic sci-fi starring Jacob Elordi, Josh Brolin, Margaret Qualley, and Guy Pearce, directed by Ridley Scott, based on the 2012 novel by Peter Heller.
Ridley Scott’s Uneven History
Ridley Scott has been very busy making epic scale films over recent years: House of Gucci, Napoleon, and Gladiator II. He has directed many incredible films, but also many poor ones: 2014’s Exodus: Gods and Kings, 2013’s The Counsellor, 2010’s Robin Hood, 1997’s G.I. Jane, 1996’s White Squall, and 1992’s 1492: Conquest of Paradise. The question is: which category will this one fall into?
A Bad Sign: The Release Date
It was originally dated for March 2026 but then moved to August 28. The end of August has traditionally been seen as the week studios dump their films. The exception is 2020’s Tenet, but that opened then only because of COVID, a studio would not purposely choose to open a major film at the end of August if they had faith in it.
When The Dog Stars was delayed in December 2025, it followed reports that the film had tested very badly. The delay was about damage control, not confidence.
Disney and 20th Century Studios
Films like The Dog Stars are not films Disney have any interest in. They make them almost as a way to be seen to be supporting 20th Century Studios, while only seeing that studio as a source of sequels, reboots, and remakes. This will surely be the case when Paramount gets Warner Bros next year, despite promises made.
Post-Apocalyptic Fatigue
There is also the problem of the post-apocalyptic setting. There have been so many films and TV shows in this genre, including the critically acclaimed The Last of Us, which feels very similar to The Dog Stars.
There are four post-apocalyptic films released in August The End Of Oak Street, The Dog Stars, Colony, and The Last House on Netflix.
| Film/Show | Similarity |
| The Last of Us | Emotional journey of survivors in a dystopian world |
| The Book of Eli | Lone survivor travelling across a desolate America |
| I Am Legend | Isolated survivor facing overwhelming danger |
| The Road | A father struggling to protect his son in the aftermath. |
The Dog Stars does not offer enough originality to stand out.
- One Night Only – Universal Pictures
Rom-com starring Monica Barbaro, Callum Turner, Maya Hawke, and Molly Ringwald and directed by Will Gluck. The script topped the 2024 Black Llist.
It has been described as the Purge but for sex, one day a year single people are allowed to have sex; its an interesting concept but it runs out of steam in the 2-minute trailer, how possibly it could be stretched for 102 minutes as seen by its average reviews.
Will Gluck has directed several great rom-coms 2010’s Easy A, 2011’s Friends with Benefits, 2023’s Anyone But You and also the two Peter Rabbit films.
Monica Barbaro is best know for starring in Top Gun Maverick and 2024’s A Complete Unknown. Callum Turner has starred in a number of films and TV shows, is probably best know far starring in the first series of The Capture. He has been on the shortlist to be the next Jams Bond but after this film it could take him off the list of possibilities.
As with all films opening at the end of August, One Night Only will have a limited stay in cinemas.
- I Want Your Sex – Black Bear
Comedy thriller starring Olivia Wilde, Cooper Hoffman, Johnny Knoxville, Margaret Cho, and Charli XCX and directed by Gregg Araki.
It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival receiving positive reviews.
- Colony – Studiocanal
Korean action horror Jun Ji-hyun, Koo Kyo-hwan and Ji Chang-wook and directed by Yeon Sang-ho.
Has similarities to The Dog Stars as its about survivors trapped in a building, quarantined after an outbreak fighting for survival,
It had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival received mixed reviews and was bought by Studiocanal at the Cannes Film Festival for several territories including the UK.