“Dog Man” had a good start in the National Box-Office, collecting $ 36 million of 3,885 North American cinemas during its first release weekend.
The animated canine-crime wrestling film of Universal and DreamWorks Animation, which takes place in the universe “Captain Underpants”, opened its doors at the end of expectations thanks to a large buzz and the repressed demand for family offers . The moviegoers awarded the film a note “A” on Cinemascore, signaling a long tail in theaters.
Another newcomer, Warner Bros. And the New Line satirical science fiction thriller “Companion”, made its debut in n ° 2 with $ 9.5 million in 3,285 theaters. The film classified R added $ 5.5 million in 60 markets abroad for a large total of $ 15 million. However, these ticket sales are solid because the “companion” costs 10 million economic dollars to produce (not to mention its marketing expenses). With stellar criticism (94% on Rotten Tomatoes) and solid public comments (“B +” on Cinemascore), observers at the box office suggest that the film could become a hit from the end of January / early February. Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid are featured in “Companion”, a pseudo-love story on a group of friends whose weekend flight descends in chaos after discovering that one of the guests is a companion robot.
“” Dog Man “(is) taking advantage of an impressive start. The wave of Family Films of PG animation which was widespread in 2024 continues in 2025, “explains Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst of the Comscore. “Meanwhile, the” companion “highly rated in R will draw a different demography and could become a” essential “film for those looking for an appointment in Valentine’s Day offset in the cinema.”
Although “Dog Man” dominated the charts in North America, the adventure drawn lacked from bite to the international box office with $ 4.2 million in 29 international markets for a global count of $ 40.6 million. However, the PG film includes a production budget of $ 40 million, so it is well placed in its theatrical race despite a more expected participation rate. “Dog Man”, not to be confused with “Wolf Man”, the Universal horror film which was released in theaters in January, is based on the series of graphic novel for children by the author of “Captain Underpants” Dav Pilkey. The film, featuring the casting of Pete Davidson’s voice, Lil rel howry and Isla Fisher, follows a human policeman who is merged with his faithful dog after being injured at work.
Exhibitors often deplore a lack of family films on the market, and this weekend box office tables seem to demonstrate the weight of family options on the big screen. “MUFASA: The Lion King” by Disney, now during its seventh weekend of exit, took place n ° 3 with $ 6.1 million out of $ 3,180. After the beginning of December, the prequel of the Set Pride Lands lasted in theaters with $ 230 million in North America and $ 653 million worldwide.
Meanwhile, just outside the first five, “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” by Paramount and “Moana 2” from Disney landed in the sixth and seventh place with $ 3.2 million and $ 2.9 million, respectively . “Sonic 3”, which opened its doors at Christmas, won $ 230.5 million at the national level and $ 462.5 million worldwide. The “Moana” suite, which landed before Thanksgiving, generated a huge $ 453 million in North America and $ 1.037 billion worldwide.
Elsewhere, the comedy of Buddy Rated by Sony “One of Ensway”, with Keke Palmer and Sza, slipped in fourth place. The film won $ 6 million out of 2,306 locations between Friday and Sunday, a drop of 21% compared to the previous weekend. With a positive word of mouth, the film on a low budget of $ 14 million generated $ 34.5 million after three release weekends.
And the champion of last weekend “Flight Risk”, an action thriller produced by Mel Gibson and with Mark Wahlberg as a bite and disarticulated pilot, plunging his nose in fifth place with $ 5.6 million in 3161 theaters. Ticket sales decreased by 53% compared to its beginnings of $ 12 million, bringing its national count to $ 20.9 million.
Until now, the overall box office has been up with sales of tickets up 14.4% compared to the same point a year ago and 3.5% compared to 2023, according to Comscore. Although the year is young, Hollywood hopes that the theatrical fortune will rebound in 2025 after the pandemic and two work strikes ravaged the box office.
