Weapons Leads Box Office

Warner Bros horror hit Weapons leads the weekend box office as a slate of mid budget titles battle for attention and profitability.

Weapons Tops Box Office as Nobody 2 Stalls

Weapons returned to the top of the weekend box office with 25 million in its second weekend after a 43 percent drop from the opening 43 million, keeping it in strong shape for a horror title. The film has grossed 89 million domestically and 148 million worldwide over two weeks on a budget of 38 million, aided by strong reviews and positive word of mouth. Warner Bros has benefited from a run of mid range hits this summer after earlier misfires, underscoring a shift in the studio’s lineup. Nobody 2 opened at No 3 with 9.2 million from 3,260 theaters, adding 4.9 million overseas for a global total of 14.1 million. The weekend also featured Disney’s Freakier Friday at 14.5 million and The Fantastic Four First Steps at 8.8 million, with Americana failing to make a splash at 0.5 million across 1,110 locations. The overall box office sits 6.4 percent ahead of last year but momentum is cooling as the summer period wears on.

The results suggest a market that still rewards a well executed low to mid budget film when it finds a broad audience. Weapons illustrates how a solid reception can translate into staying power beyond opening weekend, especially when the production costs are modest. The mixed results for Nobody 2 and Americana show that audience appetite can be uneven across genres and release windows. For studio executives, the pattern highlights the importance of reviews, word of mouth and pricing strategy in sustaining profitability without overreliance on giant tentpoles.

Highlights

The summer landscape continues to test how studios mix risk and reward