Hollywood's Box Office Hits a Brief Pause Before Big Double Feature Weekend

The summer box office took a breather this weekend, with a relatively quiet lineup before next week’s much-hyped one-two punch of the Freaky Friday reboot and the mysterious thriller Weapons. Audiences are already buzzing about the latter, with its eerie, Kubrick-inspired vibes, and the former could hit big with younger millennial women. For now, total earnings for the first weekend of August sit at around $126 million—a notable 27% drop compared to the same frame last year.

Even with the lighter turnout, there was still something for everyone—from superhero action to family fun and edgy indie fare.

Marvel’s First Family Slows Down

Marvel’s Fantastic Four: First Steps earned $11.7 million on Friday and capped off the weekend with $40 million, bringing its domestic total to just under $200 million. That’s a hefty 66% dip from its debut weekend—steeper than Thunderbolts' 56% fall but in line with Captain America: Brave New World. Compared to Superman’s impressive 53% drop in its second frame, the Four seem to be fading quicker.

Still, all isn’t grim. First Steps has outpaced Quantumania by 19% over its first ten days and is now Marvel’s top-grossing Fantastic Four film ever. Notably, 13% of this weekend’s total ($5.2 million) came from IMAX screenings, boosting its large-format tally to $26.3 million.

DreamWorks’ Villainous Sequel Sneaks Ahead

The Bad Guys 2 had a sneaky strong debut, opening with $9.2 million on Friday and totaling $22.2 million for the weekend—slightly above its 2022 predecessor. It’s the first sequel from DreamWorks based on a post-pandemic original (unlike Trolls, which launched in 2016). While the numbers are solid for an $80 million budgeted film, they don’t match the musical boost Trolls Band Together got with its $30 million opening.

Still, kids are loving it. Viewers under 12 gave it a 90% positive rating, and it earned an “A” CinemaScore—just like the first one. Attendance was evenly split between genders, with a diverse crowd: 41% white, 22% Latino/Hispanic, 18% Black, and 12% Asian American. AMC Burbank led the way with $30K in earnings through Saturday.

The Naked Gun Reloaded: Comedy Makes a Comeback

Paramount’s reboot of The Naked Gun delivered big laughs and a surprisingly strong debut, pulling in $17 million—$2 million over projections. Headlined by Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson, this update of the ‘80s classic scored with both older fans and younger viewers. Its CinemaScore was a strong A-, and audiences gave it 4.5 stars and a 67% “definite recommend.”

It’s the biggest comedy opening for Neeson since Taken 3 and even edges out 2023’s No Hard Feelings starring Jennifer Lawrence.

Paramount went all in on the film’s promotion. From quirky stunts like giant Frank Drebin inflatables and urinal ads at Comic-Con to viral trailers that racked up 135M and 148M views, the marketing leaned hard into nostalgia and absurdity. Billboard slogans like “Honk if you hate noise violations” and “Total Cop Blockers” brought the laughs offline too.

Fans old and new shared their love online. Comments included everything from “I haven’t laughed this hard in years” to “I wasn’t a fan of the originals, but this looks hilarious.” Even a joke about O.J. Simpson in the trailer got social media buzzing.

Young adults made up a solid chunk of the audience: 27% were 25–34, and nearly half were 18–34. The demo most likely to recommend the film? 35–44-year-olds at 74%.

Superman Still Soaring, but Slowing

James Gunn’s Superman held on for its fourth weekend, pulling in another $13.9 million for a $316.2 million domestic total. That’s a 44% drop from the previous weekend, but the film is still just 5% behind The Batman’s trajectory at the same point.

Jurassic Franchise Stays Alive

Universal’s Jurassic World: Rebirth added $8.7 million this weekend, with its total now at $317.6 million. That’s 9% off the pace of Dominion, but still a solid showing in its fifth week.

Together: Indie Romance-Horror Gets Creative

NEON’s Together, a darkly comedic relationship horror film starring Alison Brie and Dave Franco, brought in $6.8 million over three days and $10.8 million across its five-day launch. About 77% of its audience was under 35, skewing male at 52%.

To promote the film, NEON leaned into creative stunts: the couple read spicy fan tweets, posed with rats instead of puppies, and even offered free therapy sessions for moviegoing couples. They also repackaged celebrity PDA moments to reflect the film’s themes of clingy, toxic love.

Critics and audiences were generally favorable (91% and 79% on Rotten Tomatoes), though its CinemaScore landed at a C+—mirroring 2019’s Midsommar.

August Starts Slower, but the Bigger Picture’s Bright

Although this weekend underwhelmed, 2025’s summer box office is still trending upward. So far, total summer earnings have hit $3 billion—5% ahead of last year’s pace. Year-to-date numbers hit $5.4 billion, a 10% bump from 2024.

Top 5 at a Glance:

1. Fantastic Four: First Steps – $40M weekend, $198.4M total

2. The Bad Guys 2 – $22.2M debut

3. The Naked Gun – $17M opening

4. Superman – $13.9M weekend, $316.2M total

5. Jurassic World: Rebirth – $8.7M weekend, $317.6M total

With several blockbusters already passing the $300 million mark this year—including Superman, Lilo & Stitch, and Minecraft—Hollywood’s theatrical revival is still very much alive.