The studio didn't hold back on spending for Paul Thomas Anderson and Leonardo DiCaprio's action movie.
They spent over $130 million before starting a global marketing push. Anderson did a great job with the film. Critics are already calling it a modern classic and it's seen as a major contender for awards. Moviegoers also seem to like it, with CinemaScore giving it an "A" grade. That's much better than the "C" grade "Boogie Nights" got in 1997. It's also DiCaprio's highest score from CinemaScore since "Titanic" got an "A+" in that same year.
The film's release is very special, with showings in Imax, 70mm, Imax 70mm, and even a few in VistaVision, which is a rare format.
Each of these options has higher ticket prices, which helps boost the total earnings.
For now, "One Battle" is expected to open between $20 million and $25 million.
If the reviews and buzz are great, it could stay popular for a week or more. But with a smaller start, it will need strong word-of-mouth and a good showing overseas to make a profit.
At least it won't take much for the film to become the biggest theatrical release in Anderson's career.
He even joked about being "box-office challenged" in an August interview. His highest-grossing film is "There Will Be Blood," which made $40 million domestically and $76 million worldwide. For Warner Bros., this is a big test after seven films in a row that opened above $40 million domestically, which is a first in Hollywood. "One Battle" is a big gamble with high costs.
In contrast, Universal is opening "Gabby's Dollhouse: The Movie," a G-rated film, in 3,500 theaters, aiming for second place.
It made $4.3 million on Friday and previews, with projections of a $13.6 million opening. The DreamWorks Animation film is based on the popular Netflix series and uses both live-action and animation. It's budget was $32 million and has an "A+" grade from CinemaScore.
Lionsgate is also opening "The Strangers: Chapter II," the middle part of a planned trilogy.
It made $2.4 million on Friday and previews from 2,690 locations, with projections of a $5.6 million opening. That's less than half of the $11.8 million "Chapter I" made in May. The reviews for this sequel aren't great and audiences gave it a "C-" grade. Still, it cost only $8.5 million to make. Lionsgate plans to release "Chapter III" later.
After being number one for two weeks, Sony and Crunchyroll's "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle" is in third place, earning another $1.8 million on Friday.
It's expected to make $6.8 million in its third weekend, which is a 61% drop. These numbers are a nice bonus after its strong opening weekend. The film is on track to make $117.8 million in North America through Sunday. That makes it the 15th-highest-grossing film of 2025, which was not expected for an anime.
Warner Bros. is also fighting for third place with "The Conjuring: Last Rites," which made another $2 million on Friday, down 46% from the previous week.
The film is looking to reach $161 million through its fourth weekend, which is great considering its $55 million budget. While it was advertised as the final chapter for Ed and Lorraine Warren, it's hard to imagine the series is over after this biggest success.
Also, Universal's football horror film "Him" is losing ground, with a predicted 71% drop in revenue after poor reviews.
It's expected to make $20.9 million domestically, which is less than the $27 million production budget. Sony's "A Big Bold Beautiful Journey" is also struggling, with a projected $1.2 million for its second weekend after a bad debut. The film's projected total after ten days is $5.9 million, for a $45 million project.
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