At a time when there’s plenty of questioning and doubt within the movie world concerning what titles can carry out effectively on the massive display screen, animated options and household flicks have offered a pleasant dose of consistency. Six out of the highest 15 motion pictures domestically in 2024 fell into these classes, they usually have offered good doses of optimism. Fortuitously, that development appears to be carrying over into the brand new yr as effectively, as Peter Hastings’ Canine Man has put up some massive numbers in its opening weekend.
The brand new animated film simply gained the field workplace over the past three days, however director Drew Hancock’s unique horror film Companion, which concurrently debuted on Friday, additionally did comparatively effectively, and it now appears to be in place to do some fascinating enterprise within the coming weeks. Try the complete Prime 10 beneath and be a part of me after for evaluation.
| TITLE | WEEKEND GROSS | DOMESTIC GROSS | LW | THTRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Canine Man* | $36,000,000 | $36,000,000 | N/A | 3,885 |
| 2. Companion* | $9,500,000 | $9,500,000 | N/A | 3,285 |
| 3. Mufasa: The Lion King | $6,113,000 | $229,510,210 | 2 | 3,180 |
| 4. One Of Them Days | $6,000,000 | $34,450,000 | 3 | 2,306 |
| 5. Flight Danger | $5,600,000 | $20,907,918 | 1 | 3,161 |
| 6. Sonic The Hedgehog 3 | $3,225,000 | $230,549,000 | 4 | 2,665 |
| 7. Moana 2 | $2,836,000 | $453,894,948 | 5 | 2,200 |
| 8. A Full Unknown | $2,164,000 | $66,691,601 | 8 | 1,515 |
| 9. The Brutalist | $1,865,690 | $12,116,310 | 10 | 1,612 |
| 10. Den Of Thieves 2: Pantera | $1,600,000 | $34,484,869 | 9 | 1,471 |
Canine Man Places Up Robust Opening Weekend Numbers Comparable To The Wild Robotic
With out the identical degree of name recognition, Canine Man could not fairly put up opening weekend numbers that matched with Mike Mitchell’s Kung Fu Panda 4 (which was Dreamworks Animation’s greatest hit in 2024), however the brand new title has mainly matched the efficiency of Chris Sanders’ The Wild Robotic from final fall, and that places it on excellent footing.
In response to early figures reported by The Numbers, Canine Man made $36 million within the final three days, which could be very similar to the $35.8 million that The Wild Robotic earned when it first hit theaters. Whereas not a begin that can make sure that the Dav Pilkey adaptation shall be featured as one of many highest grossing titles of the yr come December, it is definitely already wanting like a success. The Wild Robotic completed its theatrical run across the globe making $324.8 million, making it the twenty-third greatest movie of the yr; it could be a feather within the cap of Canine Man if it have been in a position to find yourself in an identical place.
One month into 2025, the brand new animated movie additionally notably now holds the superlative of “greatest opening weekend of the yr to this point,” and whereas that is clearly not an enormous deal on the finish of January, it is price noting that issues are at the very least a tad higher than the place issues have been this time final yr. In 2024, it wasn’t till the primary weekend of March and the arrival of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Half Two {that a} title remodeled $30 million in its first three days.
In response to Selection, Canine Man solely value $40 million to provide (not counting publicity and promoting), and when one components within the cash that the film has already made overseas, it is effectively positioned to be considered as a hit. It is already trending a lot better than David Soren’s Captain Underpants: The First Epic Film from 2017, which was the primary time {that a} Dav Pilkey work was delivered to theaters. That title solely made $23.9 million in its debut, however it should managed to make $126.4 million worldwide.
However will Canine Man handle to have sustained success all through February? That is not clear as of but. The “A” score delivered by CinemaScore surveys means that audiences are loving the kooky animated film, however the response from critics hasn’t been fairly as constructive (I gave it three stars in my CinemaBlend overview, noting that its cute, but additionally all over). When it comes to competitors, Dougal Wilson’s Paddington in Peru is coming as much as attempt to steal the eye of the youngest sections of the movie-going viewers, and Julius Onah’s Captain America: Courageous New World can also be arriving mid-month is aiming for typical Marvel Studios four-quadrant enchantment.
You may virtually definitely anticipate the weekend-to-weekend drop of Canine Man to be part of my field workplace reporting subsequent Sunday.
Companion Settles For Second Place, However Phrase Of Mouth Could Flip It Into A Huge Winner
It was a forgone conclusion that Canine Man was going to win the field workplace this weekend, however Companion has been considered as a curiosity. The movie first began tremendous thrilling buzz when it screened on the finish of final yr, and that positivity solely grew stronger as critics had the prospect to completely analyze the work (I labored very arduous to keep away from spoilers in my four-star CinemaBlend overview). Per Deadline, it was estimated that the film would make between $8-10 million in its first three days, and it adopted by means of by making $9.5 million within the final three days – however it will likely be fascinating to see the way it will get handled by phrase of mouth.
The Deadline report cites sources that say “Warners underspent vastly within the marketing campaign,” however within the studio’s protection, Companion is a sophisticated movie to advertise provided that the easiest way to enter it’s by realizing little or no about it. Now that individuals have been seeing it and having fun with, I ponder if it should pull off some robust weekend-to-weekend numbers. I do not anticipate it leapfrogging over Canine Man in its second Friday-to-Sunday, however I can think about it sticking round within the Prime 5 for almost all of February (and contemplating it reportedly had a price range below $10 million, it should finally be seen as one other notable win for unique horror).
How issues play out within the coming weeks will even vastly rely on the efficiency of subsequent week’s new releases – together with Josh Reuben’s slasher characteristic Coronary heart Eyes and the Ke Huy Kwan-led motion movie Love Hurts from director Jonathan Eusebio. Be sure you head again right here to CinemaBlend subsequent Sunday for our newest field workplace report, and to start out planning your whole massive display screen adventures within the coming weeks and months, try our 2025 Film Launch Calendar.